Never tell Elon Musk he can’t do something - especially when autonomy is on the line.
Following the initial unveiling of Tesla’s dedicated robotaxi, tech reviewer titan Marques Brownlee (MKBHD) publicly expressed his skepticism regarding the vehicle’s aggressive timeline. MKBHD laid down a very specific bet: Tesla would not be able to sell and deliver a Cybercab to a regular customer for $30,000 or less before 2027.
Marques Brownlee in October 2024 on the Cybercab being delivered before 2027 for $30,000:
— Sawyer Merritt (@SawyerMerritt) February 17, 2026
"There's no way they're actually going to be able to do that. If they do, I will shave my head on camera. I'm that confident they won't do it."
Today, Tesla announced that the first… https://t.co/CDMz7IfGbG pic.twitter.com/6iu2QDR4Cl
Cybercab For Sale This Year
Responding to a recap of the wager on X, Elon confidently confirmed that Tesla will indeed sell the Cybercab to consumers this year for $30,000.
While the first Cybercab has already rolled off the production line, full production is expected to start this April, just slightly over a month away.
Tesla is expected to operate the vehicles itself initially, to work out kinks. The Cybercab is expected to be used initially in Austin, where Tesla recently began fully autonomous driving. However, that is expected to expand, and that’s where selling the Cybercab to consumers will come in. Since the vehicle doesn’t have a steering wheel or brakes, it’s dependent on being able to drive fully autonomously in the area it’s in. So it won’t be available to everyone, everywhere, at least initially. As Tesla expands the Robotaxi’s autonomous footprint, the number of consumes that could buy the Cybercab will also expand.
Yes
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 17, 2026
While Elon’s timelines (often dubbed Elon Time or 2 Weeks) have historically been a point of contention, he has the hardware to back up his confidence this time. Just yesterday, Tesla achieved a massive manufacturing milestone: the very first Cybercab officially rolled off the production line.
While this initial unit represents pre-volume production rather than a consumer-ready build, it is a critical first step. It proves that Tesla has finalized the Cybercab’s unique unboxed manufacturing process, tooling, and supply chain logistics required to build the two-seater, steering-wheel-less vehicle at scale.
If Tesla can truly deliver the Cybercab for $30,000 before the end of the year, it won’t just win a bet where MKBHD has to shave his head - it will effectively unlock the holy grail of the EV market. A truly affordable, mass-market autonomous vehicle that dramatically undercuts the average price of a new car in America.
