Tesla Begins Production of Steering-Wheel-Free Cybercab, Marking a New Autonomous Era
Electric vehicle pioneer Tesla has reached a major milestone in its autonomous mobility vision. The company announced that its first fully driverless vehicle, designed without a steering wheel or pedals, has rolled off the production line at its Texas factory.
The new model, called Cybercab, represents Tesla’s most ambitious step yet toward fully autonomous transportation and signals the company’s intent to reshape urban mobility.
A New Chapter in Driverless Transportation
Cybercab stands out as a bold entry into the rapidly evolving robotaxi market. The two-seat coupe features a minimalist interior with no steering wheel or pedals, relying entirely on software-based navigation and control. The vehicle operates using Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) system, the same advanced driver-assistance software offered in the company’s passenger vehicles.
With this launch, Tesla is positioning Cybercab as a direct competitor to autonomous ride-hailing services developed by Waymo and Zoox. Zoox, notably backed by Amazon, has been expanding its own robotaxi efforts, intensifying competition in the driverless mobility sector.
Tesla first unveiled Cybercab at its “We Robot” event in 2024, showcasing the vehicle as a central pillar of its future transportation ecosystem.
Full Autonomy as the Ultimate Goal
While Tesla’s current consumer vehicles equipped with FSD still require active driver supervision, Cybercab has been engineered to function entirely autonomously. This marks a significant shift from advanced driver assistance toward true self-driving capability.
CEO Elon Musk has repeatedly emphasized that robotaxis and humanoid robotics will play a crucial role in Tesla’s long-term growth. According to Musk, these technologies could generate trillions of dollars in value for the company over time.
Testing, Deployment, and Production Outlook
Tesla already operates Model Y-based robotaxis in regions such as the San Francisco Bay Area and Austin. Although many of these vehicles still include human safety supervisors, reports suggest that a small but growing number of fully driverless Teslas are now operating in Austin.
Initial Cybercab units coming off the production line are expected to serve as early production examples, with large-scale manufacturing anticipated to accelerate in the second quarter of the year. Musk has previously claimed that simplified manufacturing processes could allow Tesla to produce up to five million robotaxis annually.
Given Tesla’s history of ambitious projections, analysts remain cautious about such targets. Nevertheless, the rollout of Cybercab marks a pivotal step toward making fully autonomous transportation a practical reality rather than a distant concept.
