Chief Financial Officer Vaibhav Taneja confirmed on Wednesday’s earnings call that Tesla intends to sell Cybercabs to fleet operators before the year closes. The company currently maintains small robotaxi fleets using Model Y SUVs in Houston, Miami, Orlando, and Tampa, but the shift to the dedicated Cybercab model is intended to undercut market leader Waymo on price. Tesla executives claim the vehicle’s design allows for rapid manufacturing, positioning it as an easily scalable product.
However, the path to dominance is complicated by internal messaging and federal oversight. While Taneja pointed to regulatory approvals as the primary barrier, Ashok Elluswamy, Tesla’s vice president of autonomy, contradicted this by emphasizing that technical limitations remain. The software currently restricts operations to specific hours and excludes highways, with the company prioritizing safety incident prevention over rapid geographic coverage. Further complicating the outlook, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is investigating whether the Cybercab’s design—which lacks traditional components like brake pedals and side mirrors—meets federal safety standards.
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