**Tesla Set to Begin Production of Fully Autonomous Cybercab in 2025**
Tesla is preparing to take a bold step forward in the realm of self-driving vehicles with the announcement of its new Cybercab, an autonomous electric vehicle designed without pedals or a steering wheel. CEO Elon Musk revealed this plan during Tesla’s annual shareholder meeting, which was held at the company’s Austin, Texas, factory on Thursday.
### The Cybercab: A Fully Autonomous Vehicle
The Cybercab represents Tesla’s most ambitious effort yet to create a fully autonomous, driverless car. Unlike traditional vehicles, the Cybercab will not be equipped with a steering wheel, pedals, or even side mirrors. According to Musk, this radical design is optimized for unsupervised, full self-driving operation and is intended primarily for use as a robotaxi. The vehicle is engineered to deliver the lowest cost-per-mile in autonomous mode, making it potentially very attractive for urban transportation and ride-hailing services.
Production of the Cybercab is slated to begin in April 2025 at Tesla’s Austin factory. Musk described the manufacturing process as highly efficient, claiming the new production line would be able to complete a vehicle every 10 seconds—a significant improvement over the company’s current one-minute assembly time for the Model Y. If achieved, this rapid pace could allow Tesla to produce between two and three million Cybercabs per year, a scale that would make the vehicle ubiquitous in the near future, according to Musk.
### Contradictory Statements and Regulatory Challenges
Despite Musk’s bold claims, there are some uncertainties and challenges ahead for the Cybercab project. Tesla’s chairwoman, Robyn Denholm, recently stated in an interview with Bloomberg that the Cybercab would include a steering wheel and pedals as a backup, in case full autonomy was not achieved or approved by regulators. This contradicts Musk’s statement and suggests that Tesla had considered more conventional versions of the vehicle before ultimately deciding on the more radical, stripped-down design.
Another significant hurdle for the Cybercab is regulatory approval. U.S. federal regulations currently require cars to have steering wheels and pedals. While Amazon-backed Zoox has managed to secure a limited exemption for its custom-built robotaxis, it is only allowed to demonstrate these vehicles on public roads, not operate a full commercial service. General Motors faced a setback when regulators denied its request to deploy the Cruise Origin, a steering wheel-free autonomous vehicle. Meanwhile, Waymo, the country’s leading robotaxi operator, continues to use modified vehicles that retain traditional controls as it works with Chinese automaker Zeekr on developing a more futuristic model.
Musk, however, appeared undeterred by these potential roadblocks. He expressed confidence that regulators would eventually yield, especially as autonomous vehicles become more commonplace in cities. He credited Waymo for “paving the path” and stated, “Once it becomes extremely normal in cities, regulators will have fewer and fewer reasons to say no.” Musk’s optimism stands in contrast to the lengthy and