Tesla's Cybercab robotaxi is finally here, priced at $30,000 – plus a surprise robovan

Tesla (TSLA) and its CEO Elon Musk finally unveiled the electric vehicle maker's long-awaited driverless robotaxi on Thursday evening, along with a surprise — a larger autonomous robovan designed to serve many more people.

After a nearly hour-long delay, attendees at the “We, Robot” event in Los Angeles got an up-close introduction to two of Tesla's latest creations, a key strategic focus for the EV pioneer.

Musk arrived in the robot taxi – dubbed “Cybercab” – which featured a Cybertruck-like light bar at the front, a small angular profile, scissor-like doors and a minimalist interior. The cybercab appeared to navigate across the cordoned-off area of ​​Warner Brothers Studios on its way to the event stage.

As expected, the Cybercab has no steering wheels or pedals and is therefore designed to be completely autonomous.

“We will move from supervised, fully autonomous driving to unattended, fully autonomous driving,” Musk said, meaning that the cars using this latest software will no longer require human interaction when needed.

Musk said he expects the small electric vehicle to cost less than $30,000 when it hits the market sometime in 2026 but before 2027. The Cybercab will be charged using wireless induction technology, possibly via mats or rails on the road.

Tesla will begin unsupervised full self-driving (FSD) trials with Model 3 and Model Y test vehicles in Texas and California next year. Musk said further unsupervised FSD trials will occur wherever regulators allow.

Wall Street analysts expect that owners of Tesla's existing fleet on the go will be able to add these models to the company's ride-sharing service once the electric vehicles are combined with FSD and Tesla's upcoming ride-share mobility app. That would unlock enormous value and be a real game-changer, analysts believe.

Tesla hasn't announced its upcoming, lower-cost “next-gen” model, which many analysts had expected. However, it is possible that the Cybercab will have essentially the same chassis as the new passenger car, as the automaker has suggested in the past. The next-generation, sub-$30,000 electric vehicle will launch later this year, Tesla previously confirmed.

Surprise reveal

In an unexpected move, Tesla introduced the Robovan – a much larger electric vehicle with hidden wheels and no real windshield. The design of the Robovan was reminiscent of the science fiction film Blade Runnerwith wide light bars on the front facade and monolithic design. Musk said the Robovan is designed to carry up to 20 people or a large amount of cargo and can be customized for commercial or personal use, according to Tesla.

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No service date or price was provided for the Robovan.

Finally, Musk brought out a group of Optimus robots that entered the event room alone. Musk said the robots would likely cost between $20,000 and $30,000 when they hit the market in a few years – a claim he has made in the past.

Musk said the robots would mingle with event attendees and even serve them drinks at the bar.

In addition to interacting with the robots, participants were offered rides in the Cybercabs and the Model 3 and Model Y autonomous electric vehicles.

Pras Subramanian is a reporter for Yahoo Finance. You can keep following him Twitter and further Instagram.

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