Tesla CEO Elon Musk recently dismissed the idea of an affordable $25,000 Tesla, doubling down on the vision of an autonomous “robotaxi” service instead. During Tesla’s latest earnings call, Musk referred to the concept of a non-autonomous, budget-friendly car as “pointless,” sparking discussions among both fans and investors. Musk emphasized that Tesla’s mission is fundamentally about autonomy, stating, “It would be silly… completely at odds with what we believe.”
This pivot reflects Musk’s commitment to making Tesla vehicles fully autonomous. He sees a future where owners can loan out their cars as “robotaxis,” generating income when not in personal use. Musk believes this AI-driven vision of transport aligns better with Tesla’s goals than an affordable, self-driven vehicle ever could.
At Tesla’s recent “We, Robot” event, a prototype for a potential robotaxi, called Cybercab, was showcased. This sleek, two-seat coupe lacked a charging port, signaling that it may be a step toward Musk’s fully autonomous vision. However, the timeline and viability of such an endeavor remain uncertain, with regulatory and technical hurdles to overcome, especially in perfecting Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) software.
Musk’s stance has evolved on the topic of a budget-friendly Tesla. In April, Tesla reportedly scrapped plans for a cheaper model, which Musk initially denied, only to later hint at revisiting the idea. Now, however, it seems Tesla is all-in on the robotaxi route, leaving affordable, personal electric vehicles off the immediate roadmap.
Reactions from investors are still not entirely consistent. Although higher-than-expected profits caused Tesla’s shares to soar following the earnings call, many people are still worried about the brand’s accessibility and its history of missing sales goals. Musk, meanwhile, is upbeat about Tesla’s development and anticipates a 20–30% rise in car manufacturing the next year. It remains to be seen if Tesla’s lofty autonomous aspirations will come true.