Elon Musk has officially unveiled the Tesla Cybercab, a fully autonomous taxi that’s expected to enter production in 2026.
The Tesla Cybercab was revealed at the We, Robot event held today at the Warner Bros. film studio in Los Angeles, and livestreamed on Tesla’s YouTube channel.
Sharing a design very similar to previous renders, the Cybercab will debut as a two-door compact autonomous vehicle with an estimated sticker price of under US$30,000 (A$44,500).
Tesla hasn’t confirmed any technical specifications for the vehicle.
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Key design elements include a low, sleek coupe roofline with squared-off bumpers and full-width horizontal light bars at the front and rear. Like the Cybertruck, the Cybercab wears a stainless steel exterior finish.
For the first time, the Cybercab will incorporate inductive charging, which removes the need for a plug and charging cables. In other words, the Cybercab can be charged wirelessly via a charging pad.
The Cybercab has front-hinged butterfly doors that open vertically.
Inside, you’ll find a single bench with two and a minimalist dashboard featuring a large central screen. there’s no steering wheel or pedals, as you’d expect in a fully autonomous vehicle.
The success of the Cybercab will hinge on regulatory bodies approving fully autonomous driving technology for use on public roads.
“We expect to start unsupervised [Full Self-Driving] in Texas and California next year with the Model 3 and Model Y,” Mr Musk told attendees at the We, Robot event.
“We expect to start production of the Cybercab in 2026, before 2027.
“We will make this vehicle in very high volume, and before that you’ll experience a robotic taxi with a Model 3 and Model Y program wherever regulators approve it.”
Mr Musk believes the Cybercab will revolutionise the experience of road travel by making it safer, cheaper, and more enjoyable.
“Autonomous cars could be used five or ten times more, the same car would have five or ten times more value,” said Mr Musk.
“The cost of autonomous transport will be so low, you can think of it like individualised mass-transit. The average price [of bus travel] is around US$1 per mile. Operating costs for the Cybercab are going to be around US$0.20 per mile.
“With autonomy, you get your time back. That’s a big deal.
“It’ll save lives, a lot of lives, and prevent injuries. Autonomous cars will be 10 times safer than driving.
“In an autonomous world, the car is a comfortable little lounge… it’s going to be awesome.”
The robotaxi was originally due to be unveiled on 8 August, but was delayed at the last minute to make “an important design change,” according to Mr Musk.
The Tesla CEO has been promising fully autonomous vehicles since 2014, and said in 2019 that Tesla would have over a million robotaxis on the road in 2020.
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