- A two-seater Cybercab expected in 2027, will use wireless charging
- The Cybercab will cost less than $30,000, with no steering wheel or pedals
- Robovan bowed down to seating 20 people and significantly reduced operating costs
Tesla CEO Elon Musk on Thursday night unveiled the Cybercab, an autonomous electric vehicle that is part of the evolution of Tesla's so-called full self-driving system. it has no steering wheel or pedals.
Tesla may have received pushback about leaving the turn signal stalk and shift lever on some of its latest vehicles, such as the updated 2024 Tesla Model 3. But it seems the company's CEO Elon Musk is moving toward a future where none of those controls will matter—and autonomous cars are ubiquitous. may compete with mass transit.
“I think the cost of private transportation is going to be so low that you can think of it as mass transit,” Musk said at an invitation-only event from Warner Bros. Studio in Burbank, California.
The average cost of a bus—the mileage, not the ticket price—would be about a dollar per passenger mile, Musk said, while the Cybercab would likely be about 20 cents per mile for operating costs and 30 to 40 cents per mile “including taxes. and everything else.”
Tesla aimed at a price under $30,000.for the Cybercabwhich builds on the Tesla Robotaxi hype years. Musk originally promised in 2019 that he would have dozens of revenue-generating, self-driving robots operating as part of the Tesla Network by 2020.
Tesla Cybercab
Shown around a studio set, the two-seater coupe appears compact- to medium-sized by US standards. Tesla hasn't revealed details about the car's mechanical underpinnings, its propulsion system, or even its architecture, and until Green Car Reports can see these cars up close, we're calling them concept cars.
Because whenever they arrived, Musk pointed to the user model there individual owners manage private airlineslikened to shepherds tending the flock. There has been some talk about how the car rides and drives, focusing on the pragmatic bottom line.
Switch to inductive charging in future Teslas?
Musk also confirmed that Cybercab, which he interchanged with Robotaxi in the presentation, it will use wireless charging-and only wireless charging. “The Robotaxi does not have a plug; it just goes over the inductive charger and charges—so yeah, it's kind of the way it should be.”
Given the shift to inbound charging only in the future product, and Tesla's recent backtracking on Supercharger development, there may be big changes coming to the company's charging concept soon.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk at the Cybercab event (screenshot) – Oct. 2024
Musk plans autonomous Teslas versus public transportation
Musk, as he has done in the past, spent some time discussing what robotaxis allows for on a societal level—though his argument includes a future where such vehicles could actually address public transportation systems.
Musk says the average passenger car is only used about 10 hours, out of 168 hours a week. “Therefore, most of the time the cars do nothing; but if they are independent they can be used—I don't know—five times, maybe 10 times,” he said.
In other words, autonomous cars may clog up highways like the cars that people drive today, but all of their passengers will be free to use their cars as a place to rest or work.
Musk also added that if cars are always used, there will be no need for many parking lots, so there is an opportunity to turn them into parks and restore green space.
2024 Tesla Model Y. – Courtesy of Tesla, Inc.
It begins with “unsupervised FSD” for the Model 3/Y in 2025
Musk also said that Tesla expects to become “fully autonomous, unsupervised FSD” in Texas and California next year on the Model 3 and Model Y. “Then we expect to go into production with the Cybercab, which is the most advanced form of autonomous transportation.”
Musk then rephrased this statement, noting that he tends to be less optimistic about time periods, arriving: “Before 2027, let me put it that way—and we will make this car. [the Cybercab] at a very high volume. But before that you will get a robot taxi with the Model 3 and Model Y system
On the company's autonomous driving programs, Musk repeated much of what he has in the past, about how Tesla's driving computer can be safer than a human driver as it has been trained on millions of cars, sees in all directions at the same time, and doesn't. I'm tired or send a message. Musk sees autonomous vehicles being ten times or more safer than humans: “So by being autonomous, you get your time back, which is huge; it will save lives—many lives—and prevent injuries.
Tesla faced DOJ and SEC scrutiny of its 2022 self-driving applications, which concluded with a formal safety recall (on-air review) regarding federal claims it “jeopardized the safety of vehicles” the way it did. was running its city-powered driver assistance program called Full Self-Driving Beta.
The CEO noted that Tesla is planning to “overspec” the Cybercab computermaking themselves available distributed computing. “Because I think there is actually an opportunity, like Amazon Web Services, where if the car drives 50 hours a week there are more than 100 hours left. Musk wasn't clear whether the owners will “lease” the computing power or if that's part of Tesla's model to keep the price of the car low.
Tesla Robovan
Tesla Robovan
Tesla Robovan
Robovan aims to “look like the future”… with a personal C-3PO
Tesla also introduced the Robovan (emphasis on the “bo”)—a long, self-contained electric van that looks nothing like GM's canceled Cruise Origin project, but definitely embraces the dark, 1930s-1950s pulp sci-fi train-like look and is great inside for cargo. or up to 20 people when Musk teased the Tesla Robovan concept multiple times, and the design makes it refreshingly different.
“We're going to do this, and it's going to look like this,” Musk said, noting that it might bring the cost per mile (per passenger) up to 5-10 cents per mile.
“One of the things we want to do, and you've seen this with the Cybertruck, is we want to change the look of the roads,” he added. “The future should look like the future.”
Seemingly expecting a reaction to the look, Musk admitted, as we all know, that he likes dark, destructive stories about the future but instead tries to paint a “happy, happy future” with these products.
All in all, Tesla said he had it 50 private cars at the event, many of them are open for boarding. That includes the Model Y and some Cybercabs.
Tesla Optimus robot functions
Tesla Optimus robot functions
Tesla Optimus robot functions
Tesla Optimus robot functions
Musk also introduced a new generation of Optimus humanoid robotstressing that “it has improved significantly year after year.”
“So when you bring this out, you're going to have something amazing…to have your own R2D2, C-3PO,” Musk said, noting that it would cost less than the car. It will know teach or babysitwalk the dog, mow the lawn, get groceries, serve drinks or “just be your friend.”