Tesla has finally set a date for the first deliveries of the Cybertruck. CEO Elon Musk posted on social media Wednesday that the Cybertruck delivery event, which traditionally means a few select customers get to take possession of their vehicles, will be held November 30 at company’s Austin gigafactory.
The news of the delivery event comes on the same day that Tesla reported its third-quarter earnings, results that showed a 44% drop in profits from the same period last year.
Notably, the Cybertruck delivery date wasn’t included in the earnings report. The report did include a note that pilot production of the Cybertruck has started at the Giga Texas, the company’s factory in near Austin,Texas. Tesla also said the Cybertruck “remains on track for initial deliveries this year.”
Tesla had promised to deliver the Cybertruck to customers in the summer of 2023, and then later, in the third quarter. Both of those deadlines came and went.
Tesla hasn’t shared how many Cybertrucks it will put into customers’ hands during the delivery event. Production of the vehicle is expected to ramp in 2024. According to the Q3 earnings report, the gigafactory will have capacity to produce less than 125,000 Cybertrucks once it reaches mass production, a number that Musk said Tesla should hit in 2025, but not in 2024.
And based on Tesla’s balance sheet, it appears the company is pouring money into Cybertruck production. The EV-maker’s operating expenses increased 43% year-over-year to $2.4 billion, due in part to Cybertruck.
“I do want to emphasize that there will be enormous challenges in reaching volume production with the Cybertruck,” said Musk during Wednesday’s earnings call, noting that it will take about 18 months until the Cybertruck is cashflow positive.
“I think it is our best product ever. It is going to require immense work to reach volume production and be cashflow positive at a price that people can afford,” continued the executive.
“If you want to do something radical and innovative and something really special like the Cybertruck, it is extremely difficult because there’s nothing to copy. You have to invent not just hte car, but the way to make the car. So the more uncharted the territory, the less predictable the outcome.”
Tesla also said it increased spending on AI development as the company works to get its Dojo supercomputer up and running. Dojo is designed to train Tesla’s neural networks to advance the automaker’s self-driving capabilities, as well as its humanoid robot Optimus.
This article has been updated with statements from Elon Musk on the profitability of Cybertruck.
Source @TechCrunch
