The car manufacturer has announced it could begin activating its Unsupervised Full Self-Driving feature in certain vehicles by mid-2027.
Tesla is working towards releasing its Cybercabs to consumers by the end of this year. Lars Moravy, the company’s VP of engineering, stated that the goal is to have these vehicles available before 2027 concludes during their quarterly earnings presentation.
Moravy also mentioned that while Tesla is currently producing Cybercabs at its Gigafactory in Texas for its fleet of robotaxis, the company is exploring options for customer sales. Initially, Tesla plans to test the waters by gradually scaling up Cybercab sales as it gathers data on “ownership and fleet management of autonomous vehicles in consumer hands.” Elon Musk acknowledged that, for now, most Cybercabs will still remain “essentially Tesla-owned,” operating as part of the company’s ride-service platform.
The Cybercab was initially revealed in 2024, with rides beginning to be offered in Austin, Texas, via its Robotaxi app in September. Tesla has started accepting inquiries from potential buyers, particularly targeting companies interested in building up its robotaxi network, implying that the first units will likely go to businesses capable of purchasing entire fleets.
In contrast to Tesla’s traditional vehicles, Cybercabs are designed without steering wheels or brake pedals and cannot be controlled by a human driver. They depend entirely on Tesla’s Full Self-Driving software. Currently, the Unsupervised version of this software is not available for consumers, meaning that any Cybercabs sold cannot yet be included in Tesla’s ride-hailing services. Presently, Tesla owners have access to a Supervised version of the software, which necessitates a human driver. According to Ashok Elluswamy, the Director of AI at Tesla, the company anticipates initiating the Unsupervised Full Self-Driving feature in “some of the first customer vehicles joining the Robotaxi fleet” around the second quarter of 2027.
Notably, shortly after introducing rides with Cybercabs in Austin, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) initiated an investigation into the vehicles. The agency highlighted that Tesla had self-certified the vehicles as compliant with all applicable Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS). It plans to investigate the processes and data Tesla used for this self-certification to ensure compliance with these safety standards.
