Tesla to End Cybertruck Production and Redirect Capacity to Cybercab
Tesla sets an end date for Cybertruck production
Tesla plans to stop producing the Cybertruck in about eight months, CEO Elon Musk said in a Monday post on X. Musk said the company will attempt to manufacture as many steel-clad pickups as it can before the shutdown, but acknowledged that Tesla will need to return deposits to many people who placed reservations.
Musk defended both the vehicle and the decision to discontinue it. He said the Cybertruck was not unprofitable, while arguing that the opportunity cost created by its manufacturing complexity was far greater than the value of increasing Cybercab production. Tesla intends to use the factory space and resources devoted to the pickup to build additional two-seat Cybercab robotaxis.
The change places Cybercab at the centre of Tesla’s factory-capacity decisions. Its importance was already evident as Tesla delays Cybercab, Semi and Megapack launches outlined delayed Cybercab, Semi and Megapack launches amid pressure on spending and profit, while the company now identifies incremental robotaxi production as the more valuable use of the line.
Reservations did not translate into comparable sales
The first Cybertrucks reached customers in late 2023, after a prolonged reservation period in which the vehicle appeared capable of becoming a major product for Tesla. Musk said reservations had reached 1 million and predicted annual sales of roughly 250,000 trucks.
Actual deliveries have been far below those expectations. Tesla does not separately report Cybertruck sales, but industry experts estimate that about 71,000 vehicles have been sold since initial deliveries began in November 2023. The source notes that sales had lagged for months, even though the approaching end of production could prompt a final increase in demand.
Some purchases also came from companies in Musk’s wider business network. SpaceX, now known as SpaceXSI, bought $131 million of Cybertrucks from Tesla in 2025, as disclosed in its S-1 registration statement ahead of an IPO. The source also notes that xAI bought $430 million of Tesla Megapacks for data centres before merging with SpaceX.
What the shift means for business planning
Tesla’s decision does not frame the Cybertruck as a loss-making product. Instead, it presents the issue as a choice over constrained manufacturing capacity: producing a complex pickup or allocating the same space and resources to Cybercab output. The company said last week that it planned to use the space for more Cybercabs.
For businesses assessing product portfolios, the practical implication is that reservations and visibility should be considered alongside delivered demand and the value of alternative capacity uses when production resources are limited.