Back in October 2024, Tesla’s “We, Robot” event introduced the world to Optimus, the Robovan, and the Cybercab. Drawing design inspiration from the Cybertruck, the Cybercab offered yet another look at the proposed driverless car future, this time sans a steering wheel and pedals.

But the biggest shocker was the Tesla CEO’s claim that not only did he expect the Cybercab to be offered to customers at under $30,000, but that it would also enter high-volume production before 2027. Granted, by his own admission, Elon Musk said at the time that he tends to be “a little optimistic with timeframes,” but it got tech creator Marcus Brownlee, aka MKBHD, thinking.

More: Tesla Offers Rides In A Car With No Wheel Or Pedals, So Naturally The Feds Showed Up

So confident was MKBHD that Tesla wouldn’t meet such a timeline, he made a bit of a one-sided bet: he offered to shave his head live on camera if they made good. To be specific, Brownlee said that Tesla wouldn’t sell a Cybercab to a customer for $30,000 before 2027.

Semantics aside, that moment triggered a bunch of AI videos and memes, particularly from fans of Tesla, with Elon Musk even replying to one such post on X, saying, “Gonna happen. 😂”

A Long Time Coming

Since the Cybercab reveal, we’ve seen more information about the car trickle out, including it would likely deliver around 300 miles (482 km) of range, use large castings to save costs, and still projected to cost $30,000 or less. In February, the team even appeared to be ahead of schedule, with the first Cybercab rolling off Tesla’s Texan production line.

Brownlee himself admitted he was a little nervous when it came to light that a new Cybercab event had been scheduled for the 3rd of September. But luckily for him (and his hair), the event had nothing to do with customer sales. Instead, it announced that the Cybercab would be added to the Tesla Robotaxi network within their existing geofenced areas.

But while it looks like his hair is safe for now, the Tech Tuber went on to say that although he thinks Tesla may be ahead of its time with the Cybercab, he expects self-driving cars to become more mainstream in the next 10 years. Oh, and regardless of whether he wins the “bet” or not, he’ll be donating to Cancer Research in January.

Tesla Cybercab

Developing and building fully autonomous vehicles isn’t easy. Just ask Tesla, which has been working on the technology for more than a decade and has yet to perfect it. Based on a recent video of a Model Y currently being used by its robotaxi fleet in Austin, Texas, Tesla still has a long way to go.

This clip was recently shared on Reddit by a frequent user of Tesla’s Austin robotaxi service, and it may make you think twice before trying it yourself. For whatever reason, the Model Y in question attempted to make a right turn at a large intersection, but failed to realize that the inside corner of the road was blocked off by bollards for pedestrian safety.

Read: Tesla’s Cybercab Is About To Carry Real Passengers

A human driver would have seen these bollards and realized you have to turn around them. Instead, the Tesla Model Y drove directly into the blocked-off area and sat there for several seconds, presumably because it realized it was now stuck. Unable to reverse out and correct its mistake, the robotaxi instead tried to thread its way through two of the bollards, hitting them in the process.

It didn’t take long for Redditors to identify the exact intersection where the incident took place, and a Google Street View search revealed the bollards had been there since at least February 2024.

Video Reddit /bladerskb

Cybercabs Are Coming

Despite incidents like this, Tesla appears to be plowing ahead with plans to expand its robotaxi fleet in Austin. According to a recent report, it completed a local trial with the Cybercab and company employees on private roads and is now preparing to add the Cybercab to its fleet and make it available to the public.

It remains to be seen whether the Cybercab’s self-driving capabilities will be better than those of other Tesla models. We do know it’s equipped with more RAM and an upgraded AI4 Fully Self-Driving computer. Whether it actually performs any better than a Model Y like this remains to be seen, but as we’ve seen so often from Tesla in the past, members of the public will be used as test dummies.

Franz von Holzhausen has run Tesla’s design studio since 2008, and most of what people picture when they see a Tesla came off his desk. The Model S is one of those cars, so it makes sense that he took delivery of the definitive version, the Plaid Signature Edition, chassis number #001, the one at the very front of the production line.

More: Tesla’s Hidden Door Handle Drama Could Change Every New Car In America

Before settling in with the car that closes out the Model S story, he drove it to Unplugged Performance in California. The tuner is better known for wheels, brakes, wraps and body kits, but detailing sits on the menu too, and that’s what he was there for. The bodywork he drew more than a decade ago stayed exactly as it left the factory. What he wanted was for it to stay that way.

Preserving His Own Handiwork

Unplugged Performance

While the car was brand-new, the first step was a thorough chemical decontamination wash to remove bonded fallout, iron particles, and transport residue picked up before delivery. Once prepared, the Auto Spa team disassembled parts of the exterior so the film could be applied without a visible seam anywhere.

According to Unplugged Performance, paint protection film acts as a physical barrier that absorbs stone chips, scratches, and minor wear, shielding the factory paint underneath. For Signature Edition #001, that was only the starting point.

Unplugged Performancean

Following careful inspection under dedicated lighting, technicians coated every panel and trim piece with a full ceramic treatment. The extra layer adds hydrophobic properties that repel dirt and make washing easier, while deepening the gloss of the paintwork.

More: The Cybertruck Finally Found Its Natural Habitat, A Fake Desert Planet

Finally, the team covered all glass surfaces with a window film that blocks 99% of ultraviolet radiation and 98% of infrared heat. That keeps the interior out of the worst of the Californian sun, so it should still look new years from now.

The Tesla Model S Plaid Signature Edition arrived earlier this year as a farewell special for the long-running nameplate. Production is capped at 250 units, offered by invitation to select customers at $159,420 apiece.

More: Tesla Tuner Dares You To Break Their New Wheels

As with the regular Plaid, the Signature Edition uses the tri-motor setup producing 1,020 hp (761 kW / 1,034 PS), with a handful of unique touches on top. Chief among them is the Garnet Red finish, paired with gold emblems, special badging, and 21-inch Velarium wheels with gold calipers over carbon-ceramic brakes. Inside there’s white Alcantara upholstery, a yoke steering wheel, and Signature branding.

This isn’t the first time von Holzhausen has handed a personal car to Unplugged Performance. Years earlier, he had his Model 3 fitted with coilover suspension, sway bars, adjustable suspension arms, and carbon-ceramic brakes, again leaving the bodywork alone.

Unplugged Performance

Footage circulating online appears to show a woman behind the wheel of a Tesla Model Y traveling along the Trans-Canada Highway between Golden and Revelstoke, all while seemingly fast asleep. If accurate, the episode points to some worrying gaps in the vehicle’s driver-monitoring system.

Fellow Canadian motorist Carleigh King spotted the drowsy driver on Sunday afternoon. In the video, the woman’s head is slumped over, and she appears blissfully unaware that she’s snoozing at approximately 62 mph (100 km/h). It’s a terrifying watch, though far from the only time we’ve come across something like it.

Also: A $10 Ronaldo Doll Head Is Fooling Tesla So Drivers Can Doze Off

The Tesla in question is presumably fitted with Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (Supervised) package, which includes a driver-monitoring system. This setup uses the Model Y’s in-car camera to track the driver’s eye movements and torque sensors in the steering wheel to detect whether the driver is alert. However, as we’ve seen in the past, the camera system can be easily fooled by wearing sunglasses, like this driver did.

She Wasn’t Driving Alone…

Speaking with CBC, King says that, shockingly, the woman wasn’t driving by herself. In fact, there were reportedly two children sitting in the Tesla’s rear seats, meaning their lives were also in danger because of the driver’s slumber. It’s unclear how the driver circumvented the steering wheel’s torque sensors, but we do know that several companies sell cheap accessories to bypass them.

Watch: Viral Video Shows Older Tesla Driver And Passenger Both Asleep At Highway Speed

According to Cpl. Michael McLaughlin from the B.C. Highway Patrol, the driver could face some serious charges for her careless behavior.

“Anything from a simple violation ticket all the way up to criminal charges for dangerous operation of a motor vehicle,” he said. “There could also potentially be criminal charges related to negligence if there are children in the vehicle and those children are put at risk by the driver not supervising as the vehicle is traveling down the highway.”

Lead Image: Castanet News

A Tesla Semi rear-ended two passenger vehicles in Nevada on Sunday, killing two people and leaving another with life-threatening injuries, in what appears to be the first known fatal crash involving the fully electric truck. Early information gathered by the sheriff’s office at the scene suggests the driver may have fallen asleep, though the official cause has yet to be determined.

More: The Driver Said Self-Driving Was On, Tesla Says He Floored It To 73 MPH In Fatal Home Crash

The incident happened Sunday morning on US 50 in Dayton, Nevada. Two vehicles, one of them a classic VW Beetle, had reportedly stopped at a red light when the Tesla plowed into them from behind.

Two Dead At The Scene

The force of the collision and the sheer mass of the semi claimed the lives of the married couple, who were pronounced dead at the scene. A third person was flown to a local hospital and remains there with life-threatening injuries.

Both directions of US 50 were shut for a few hours while crews cleared the debris. Photos of the aftermath show the heavily damaged Beetle at the roadside, right next to the white semi that appears to have a broken front bumper. The other vehicle, a red Toyota RAV4 SUV, is left with a crumpled rear end.

More: Another Tesla Crash, Another Owner Says It ‘Drove On Its Own’

The accident is currently under investigation by the Nevada State Police. Preliminary statements obtained at the scene by deputies from the Lyon County Sheriff’s Office “suggest the driver of the truck might have fallen asleep,” though that account has yet to be confirmed by investigators.

The Semi is not available with Tesla’s Full Self-Driving system, but it does come with various safety features, including autonomous emergency braking, which is meant to help in situations like this.

The Tesla Semi is being manufactured at the Gigafactory Nevada, which is about an hour away from the site of the accident. The name of the driver and the operator of the semi truck have not been made public.