Tesla shows off Cybercab, robovan prototype and next-gen Optimus humanoid robot

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) held its highly anticipated “We, Robot” event on Thursday night at a Warner Bros. studio in Burbank, California. The event started over 53 minutes late due to what Elon Musk said was a medical emergency with a crowd member.

Elon Musk rode a two-seat Cybercab prototype around the movie studio to start off the festivities and said that there were a total of 50 fully autonomous cars on display. Notably, the Cybercab had no steering wheel or pedals. The two doors opened upward like butterfly wings. Musk laid out the case for robotaxis in general, including the improved safety level and lower operating cost on a per-mile basis. He described a world where a current Uber (UBER) or Lyft (LYFT) driver could actually manage a fleet of autonomous vehicles.

Musk said he expects to start full unsupervised autonomous driving in Texas and California in 2025 for the Model 3 and Model Y. Almost tongue in cheek, Musk said Cybercab production is anticipated to begin in 2026. The Cybercab is expected to cost below $30,000. The vehicle will use inductive charging.

The next big reveal was a 20-person autonomous robovan prototype that is expected to be able to transport up to 20 people or a sizable amount goods in a development that is seen solving transportation density issues. “So if you want to take a sports team somewhere or you’re looking to really get the cost of travel down to, I don’t know, $0.05 to $0.10 cents per mile, then you can use the Robovan,” he highlighted.

The next version of the Optimus humanoid robot was also shown off. Musk said that at scale, an Optimus robot will cost between $25,000 and $30,000. He said Optimus could be Tesla’s (TSLA) most important product ever because nearly everyone will want it to help with household or business tasks. Musk thinks Optimus robots will walk freely among the population and fill jobs such as bartending. Tesla (TSLA) wrapped up the event by conducting an Optimus dance party as a simulation of the humanoid robot future.

Investors can expect an active day of trading on Friday. Tesla is down 4% on a year-to-date basis, which puts it ahead of electric vehicle peers such as ZEEKR Intelligent (ZK) -13%, Lucid Group (LCID) -21%, Li Auto (LI) -28%, NIO (NIO) -32%, Polestar Automotive (PSNY) -35%, and Rivian Automotive (RIVN) -56%. The only auto stocks outpacing Tesla (TSLA) in 2024 are Ferrari (RACE) +34%, General Motors (GM) +32%, and Honda Motor (HMC) +3%.