Earlier this month, the electric vehicle community was abuzz when a video surfaced showing the Cybercab in action at Giga Texas. The footage highlighted the robotaxi’s self-driving capabilities, sparking excitement among enthusiasts.

Longtime Giga Texas observer Joe Tegtmeyer reported that Tesla has been conducting test drives of the Cybercab along the main building of the factory over the past weeks. Notably, a modified gaming joystick is used for manual interventions during these tests.

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Additional tests, including water ingress tests, are reportedly being carried out at the west end-of-line facility and other areas around Giga Texas. A significant amount of production equipment has been spotted at the staging lot, hinting at a potential new production line.

During the Q3 2024 earnings call, Elon Musk mentioned that Tesla aims for volume production of the Cybercab by 2026, with initial production possibly starting in 2025. The company plans to produce at least 2 million units annually.

Why It Matters: The testing of the Cybercab at Giga Texas marks a significant step in Tesla’s unveiling of its two-seater robotaxi earlier this year.

The Cybercab, priced under $30,000, is part of Tesla’s strategy to revolutionize urban transportation with autonomous vehicles. This comes at a time when there is skepticism from industry rivals like Lucid Group Inc. LCID, whose CEO Peter Rawlinson doubts the near-term feasibility of self-driving cars.

In pursuit of this goal, Tesla is actively recruiting top talent to enhance its teleoperation capabilities for the Cybercab and other projects, as reported in recent initiatives.

Price Action: Tesla stock closed at $332.89 on Wednesday, down 1.6% for the day. In after-hours trading, the stock increased slightly by 0.5%. Year to date, Tesla’s stock has gained 34%, according to data from Benzinga Pro.

The consensus rating from analysts is “Neutral” for the Tesla stock, according to data from Benzinga Pro. The highest price target is $400, while the consensus price target is 232.20, implying a 30% downside.

Check out more of Benzinga’s Future Of Mobility coverage by following this link.

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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.

Photo courtesy: Tesla