Tesla to End Cybertruck Production in 2027 as It Pivots to Robotaxis and Robots

Tesla will stop manufacturing the Cybertruck in 2027, according to CEO Elon Musk, who announced on X that the company will repurpose the factory space to build more two-seater Cybercab robotaxis.

The decision to wind down the futuristic, stainless-steel-clad EV comes after just a few short years of underwhelming sales. When Musk delivered the first Cybertrucks in late 2023, he predicted Tesla would sell roughly 250,000 per year. The vehicle was meant to be such a cornerstone of Tesla's future that, before construction began, the company referred to its Texas factory as the "Cybertruck factory." Instead, Tesla has sold only tens of thousands — total — over the past three years.

A Strategic Shift Toward AI and Robotics

The Cybertruck's discontinuation comes as Tesla works to reposition itself as an AI- and robotics-focused company, with robotaxi ambitions at the center of that strategy.

Over the past two months, Tesla has deployed Cybercabs on the streets of its hometown of Austin, Texas. With no major incidents reported to date, the company says it plans to expand Cybercab operations to other cities, beginning with Dallas later this month. Tesla also operates robotaxi versions of its Model Y SUVs in Austin, Houston, and Dallas, as well as three cities in Florida.

This marks the third product Tesla has discontinued to fuel those broader ambitions. Earlier this year, the company ended production of the Model S sedan and Model X SUV, repurposing that factory space to manufacture Optimus humanoid robots.

The Cybertruck's Troubled History

First announced in 2019, the Cybertruck was a product Musk had long obsessed over.

"Probably my personal favorite for the next product is the pickup truck, and we are going to just do an amazing pickup truck," he said on a Tesla earnings call that year.

Musk promised the Cybertruck would be radical, inspired by the designs of cyberpunk sci-fi stories like Blade Runner. While that certainly bore out in the design, the company overpromised on the basics from the outset. During the now-infamous 2019 reveal event — when head designer Franz von Holzhausen cracked the Cybertruck's windows with steel balls — Tesla said the EV would start at under $40,000 and offer up to 500 miles of range. It achieved neither figure.

Instead, the truck was delayed by two years, partly due to the COVID-19 pandemic. When it finally reached the market in late 2023, Tesla handed over the first few Cybertrucks in a short, somewhat odd event — by the company's own standards, at least — that saw a poorly lit Musk standing in a truck bed, promising the vehicle was "the finest in apocalyptic equipment" suited to "late civilization vibes." The base price had climbed to around $60,000, and the top-end range had shrunk by over 100 miles.

The truck has struggled in the market ever since. Its polarizing design never seemed to resonate with buyers, especially at a higher-than-expected price. Then, during its first full year of sales in 2024, Musk became a major financial backer of Donald Trump, turning the instantly recognizable Cybertruck into a target for protesters. That continued into 2025 as Musk led the so-called Department of Government Efficiency, which fired thousands of federal workers.

via TechCrunch