Update: Becky Peterson, a journalist from the Wall Street Journal, says she’s acquired a copy of the Deutsche Bank report from the Autonomous Day conference that took place in NYC on December 5. The report confirms many of the points mentioned in the Chinese media, including that Travis Axelrod met with Deutsche Bank during the conference.

Peterson outlines five key points from the report, including that Deutsche Bank refers to the “new Tesla model” as the “Model Q.” The report also mentions that the EV is expected to launch in the first half of 2025, priced under $30,000 with federal tax credits or less than $38,000 without, and built on Tesla’s existing platforms. However, it’s unclear from her tweet whether these statements are Axelrod’s own words or Deutsche Bank’s assessment.

In another tweet, Peterson pointed out that the report makes no mention of “Redwood, the internal code name for a mass market vehicle, built on a new platform, which Musk paused earlier this year” adding that “It also doesn’t say anything about the size or cost, or how it might differ from a Model 3”.

We’ve reached out to Peterson and will update this story if we hear more.

I got a copy of the Deutsche Bank report.

Here's what it does say:

1. @travisraxelrod met with DB for its Autonomous Driving Day on December 5 in NYC.
2. DB describes "the new Tesla model" which it calls "Model Q".
3. DB says it will launch in the first half of 2025, and…

— Becky Peterson (@beckpeterson) December 9, 2024

Original story follows below.

If a report coming out of China, citing statements from a Deutsche Bank conference and Tesla’s VP of Investor Relations, is to be believed—and that’s a big if until there’s official confirmation or firsthand verification, Tesla is allegedly gearing up to launch a new EV called the Model Q next year, priced at just $30,000.

Or at least that’s the gist of a story currently doing the rounds in the Chinese media. The report claims that Travis Axelrod, Tesla’s head of investor relations, confirmed the existence and impending arrival of the new entry-level car during a Deutsche Bank Autonomous Driving Day conference.

Related: Will A $25K Model 2 Small Crossover Hit The Spot For EV Buyers?

The story appears to have originated with Wall Street CN, which claims Axelrod said the baby Tesla will debut in the first half of 2025 prices at $37,500. But if returning president, Donald Trump, opts not to trash the current EV tax credit system the transaction price could drop to just $30k.

And that’s not the only secret car Tesla has in store for us next year, according to the same report. It claims the automaker will also launch other new models to expand its market size in a bid to hit a 25-30 percent growth target. One of those additional EVs could be a long-wheelbase, three-row Model Y conceived primarily with China in mind, but which could also work well in other countries and help plug the huge gap between the Y and X SUVs. The Model Y is also scheduled for a facelift in 2025.

Tesla warned however, that rolling out new product would inevitably lead to a temporary drop in profitability, Chinese media says. Other news supposedly coming out of the conference includes Tesla’s affirmation that it would launch a self-driving taxi service in California and Texas in 2025 using Model 3 and Y vehicles ahead of the launch of the company’s real robotaxi, the Cybercab, in 2026. Tesla will eventually cut the cost of Cybercab production to $30k per unit, the report claims.

We reached out to Travis Axelrod, Tesla’s Investor Relations team, as well as Deutsche Bank’s North American and Chinese divisions for comment, but have yet to hear back from anyone, so for now you probably ought to take the news with a pinch of salt. But if it’s true, legacy carmakers are going to have a nightmare on their hands trying to compete.

Note: The images in this story are digital renders by Francois Hubert/SB-Medien of how a new small Tesla crossover could look, and are not endorsed by Tesla.

Illustrations Jean Francois Hubert/SB-Medien for Carscoops

There were plenty of talking points after the Tesla Cybercab’s glitzy unveiling a couple of weeks ago and one of the more interesting topics relates to how the carmaker plans to charge the all-electric robotaxi.

Take a look at the photos published by Tesla of the self-driving two-seater and you’ll notice it does not have a charge port. That’s not an accident. The Cybercab will be produced at scale without a charging port, meaning it cannot use the carmaker’s expansive network of Superchargers. Instead, the Cybercab can only be charged wirelessly.

Read: Musk’s Cybercab Dreams Could Hit 2,500-Unit Limit Under US Rules

During the car’s presentation, Tesla teased it using inductive charging and recently shared a clip on X that shows it charging at 25 kW. That’s impressive for inductive charging and is much quicker than the standard 11.5 kWh provided by Tesla’s Wall Connector. Of course, it is much slower than most public chargers, including Tesla’s V4 Superchargers, which can charge at up to 350 kW.

Responding to this clip, technology reviewer Marques Brownlee indicated there’s no way Tesla can make an inductive charging system that isn’t inefficient, noting that “wireless charging has a massive heat waste,” and suggesting that a “really noble goal for something like this would be maybe 75% efficiency.” Tesla responded to this claim, stating it’s achieved efficiency that “is well above 90%”, while Elon Musk claimed that “there is no meaningful efficiency difference between inductive and conductive charging if the system is designed right.”

Hold up, it doesn't even touch the car? Genuinely asking, is there a way this *couldn't* be inefficient? https://t.co/PrfDNZDg0v

— Christian Selig (@ChristianSelig) October 18, 2024

Efficiency is well above 90%

— Tesla (@Tesla) October 19, 2024

If true, that would be quite an impressive feat. Last year, Tesla quietly purchased a German company specializing in wireless charging technologies for a reported $76 million. That company, Wiferion, had claimed to have developed a wireless charging solution that achieves 93% efficiency.

Although the Cybercab may achieve a breakthrough in wireless charging, not adding a plug seems shortsighted. Tesla wants to establish a huge fleet of robotaxis but none of them can use existing Superchargers, nor any other public charging network. This means Tesla will need to either update its Superchargers to include wireless charging pads specifically for the Cybercab, or the onus will be placed on owners to charge their robotaxis at home with a charging pad.

There is no meaningful efficiency difference between inductive and conductive charging if the system is designed right.

There is always an inductor somewhere in the charge circuit!

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 19, 2024

When unveiling the Tesla Cybercab late last week, Elon Musk promised that it would be produced in “very high” numbers. Bold words, but there are still plenty of pesky regulatory hurdles for Tesla to clear before this fully autonomous vehicle even sniffs a production line—let alone starts rolling out in serious volume.

Like Tesla’s other models, the Cybercab relies on the company’s vision-only autonomous driving tech, but with a twist: no steering wheel, no pedals, no controls whatsoever. While this makes sense for a vehicle that can drive itself 100% of the time without any human intervention, actually getting approval to roll out such a vehicle onto public roads isn’t easy.

Read: Tesla Cybercab Is A $30,000 Robotaxi Without A Steering Wheel Or Pedals

For any automaker looking to launch a vehicle without standard driving controls must be granted permission from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to do so. GM attempted to get an exemption to roll out a robotaxi without normal controls back in 2022 but, after two years, abandoned the request after it went unanswered.

If Tesla does manage to get the NHTSA’s approval to introduce the Cybercab, current regulations would only permit it to deploy 2,500 vehicles per year without a steering wheel and pedals, Bloomberg reports. That would not be enough to achieve Musk’s aim of operating a huge fleet of robotaxis across the United States. According to University of South Carolina law professor and autonomous vehicle expert, Bryant Walker, “exemptions aren’t a viable route for a mass manufacturer,” unless “Congress increases this limit.”

Musk insists Tesla will start building the Cybercab before 2027, though they haven’t even filed for the necessary NHTSA exemption yet. Maybe they’re holding off for dramatic effect, or maybe it’s just business as usual at Tesla, where deadlines seem more like suggestions.

On top of all this, Tesla has state-level regulations to contend with. Tesla doesn’t have a driverless testing or deployment permit in California and is likely years away from obtaining one. It will also need to provide the state with comprehensive testing data. It might be a bit easier to get the Cybercab on the road in states like Texas, but even there, Tesla faces the uphill battle of proving that this tech is ready for prime time.