Tesla enters new era as Cybercab robotaxi production gets underway VIDEO

Tesla’s much-anticipated autonomous robotaxi, the Cybercab, has begun production, CEO Elon Musk announced. The announcement came the same week the electric vehicle maker reported first-quarter profits that exceeded expectations.

“Cybercab has started production,” Musk wrote on his X social media account, alongside a promotional 38-second video. The clip, reportedly filmed from inside a driverless Cybercab, showed the vehicle rolling off the factory floor and driving onto public roads. Musk also shared additional footage appearing to show multiple gold-colored Cybercabs driving in formation.

Cybercab has started production pic.twitter.com/MAeswanf96

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 24, 2026

The video followed Tesla’s earlier statement on Wednesday that it remained on track to begin “volume production” of both the Cybercab and Tesla Semi later this year, after reporting first-quarter profits of $477 million.

During an April 22 earnings call, Musk said initial production of the Cybercab would be “very slow, but then ramping up and going exponential towards the end of the year.” He also said he hoped Tesla’s unsupervised Full Self-Driving (FSD) driver-assistance system would be operating “in a dozen or so states by the end of this year.”

“We’re taking a very cautious approach to the rollout here,” Musk said, adding that he expected the project to become “material probably in a significant way next year.”

The Cybercab, which is designed as a fully autonomous robotaxi without a steering wheel or pedals, was unveiled in autumn 2024, with Musk previously suggesting it would enter service in 2027.

Tesla began limited robotaxi testing for “early access” users on an invitation-only basis in Austin, Texas, in June last year. In February, the company posted an image showing employees around a Cybercab on a factory floor with the caption: “First Cybercab off the production line at Giga Texas.”

Tesla’s entry into the robotaxi market comes after competitor Waymo, owned by Alphabet, launched its commercial autonomous taxi service in 2021.

Wedbush analyst Dan Ives said this week that growth in FSD will “change the financial model/margins for Tesla looking ahead.”

By Vafa Guliyeva