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‘Cybertruck could be as mainstream as the Tesla Model Y’: analyst predicts

(Credit: Tesla)

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Long-time TSLA bull ARK Invest predicted that the “Cybertruck could be as mainstream as the Tesla Model Y,” based on Google Trends data. The Tesla Cybertruck certainly seems to elicit strong emotions from people—both good and bad—which may hint at its projected demand. 

In a recent blog entry, ARK Invest wrote about the Tesla Cybertruck’s demand. It explained why other analysts might have low demand forecasts for Elon Musk’s unique pickup truck.

“In addition to 1.5 million existing Cybertruck reservations, early Google Trends data suggest that the Cybertruck could be as mainstream as the Tesla Model Y,” wrote ARK Invest analyst Sam Korus. 

“On April 2, 2023, just as Elon Musk tweeted that he was walking the Cybertruck production line, the number of searches for the Cybertruck on Google exceeded those for the Model Y, as shown below. Notably, Cybertruck search volume originated in truck-loving geographies, potentially suggesting [a] desire to buy,” Korus concluded in the blog. 

Tesla Model Y’s Popularity

Data from JATO Dynamics suggest that the Model Y led the world sales ranking of passenger cars in Q1 2023. Considering JATO’s data, the Model Y is well on its way to becoming the world’s best-selling car

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Chairman of the Board of Tesla Motors, Robyn Denholm, appeared to confirm JATO’s data at the 2023 Shareholders’ Meeting. She shared with shareholders that the Model Y became the best-selling vehicle of any kind in Europe in the first quarter of 2023 and the best-selling non-pickup in the United States. 

Elon Musk added to Denholm’s announcement later in the meeting, stating that Tesla is “highly-confident” the Model Y would become the number one best-selling car on Earth by the end of the year. 

Elon Musk’s Tesla Cybertruck Predictions

From the beginning, Elon Musk set the bar high for Model Y sales. The same can not be said for the Tesla Cybertruck. While Musk is very proud of the electric vehicle’s unique design, he is also acutely aware that it may not be popular with every consumer looking to purchase a pickup truck. 

The Tesla CEO provided a quick Cybertruck estimate during the last Shareholders Meeting, predicting that the company might sell between 250,000 to 500,000 units of the all-electric pickup truck annually. 

“I don’t know. We’ll make as many as people want and can afford,” Musk added. 

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Based on recent reservation estimates, Tesla received over 1 million pre-orders for the Cybertruck so far. A survey released in April showed that most Tesla Cybertruck reservation holders firmly intend to purchase the vehicle. 

Demand for the Cybertruck has been repeatedly analyzed since Tesla unveiled the electric pickup truck. This year might provide some answers to the question of the Cybertruck’s demand. Tesla is entirely focused on Cybertruck production this year and plans to hold a delivery event before 2023 ends. 

The Teslarati team would appreciate hearing from you. If you have any tips, contact me at maria@teslarati.com or via Twitter @Writer_01001101.

Maria--aka "M"-- is an experienced writer and book editor. She's written about several topics including health, tech, and politics. As a book editor, she's worked with authors who write Sci-Fi, Romance, and Dark Fantasy. M loves hearing from TESLARATI readers. If you have any tips or article ideas, contact her at maria@teslarati.com or via X, @Writer_01001101.

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Elon Musk

Tesla seems to have fixed one of Full Self-Driving’s most annoying features

Tesla seems to have resolved an issue that many users of the Full Self-Driving suite complained about recently.

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Tesla's Cabin-facing camera is used to monitor driver attentiveness. (Credit: Andy Slye/YouTube)

Tesla seems to have listened to drivers and owners who complained about a very annoying feature that monitors the eyes of the vehicle operator while using the Full Self-Driving suite.

Earlier this month, owners complained that versions of Full Self-Driving Supervised were too quick to alert drivers of their eyes going off the road, which is required for operation.

Tesla to fix an FSD driver monitoring annoyance, Elon Musk hints

If you’re doing something as simple as adjusting HVAC settings or changing Autopilot speed offset, the cabin-facing camera would alert the driver that their eyes need to be on the road.

It was incredibly quick to warn you, and many argued that changing these features while the vehicle is using FSD is safer than doing it while operating the car manually.

After several complaints, Tesla CEO Elon Musk said he agreed with the fact that FSD would warn drivers so quickly. When a user on X noted that “I can’t even glance at the display to add a nav stop without getting yelled at” and stated it was what they hated most about FSD, Musk replied, “You’re right.”

Tesla is now rolling out a new update of the FSD suite with v13.2.9, which includes various improvements. One of which appears to be a less dramatic driver monitoring system, which includes perhaps a slightly longer grace period before it will alert you to look at the road.

Several owners are reporting they’ve noticed a change, with it being less restrictive than previously:

Driver monitoring is very important, considering people do abuse FSD and its capabilities. It is important to pay attention, even if you are overwhelmingly confident in the abilities of FSD, because, in the event of an accident, Tesla will be the one to take the bad publicity for it.

This is even if the driver is found liable for the accident.

However, from personal experience, the alerts it gave were slightly dramatic, and I felt that they were over the top. I was admonished by the driver monitoring system for simply adjusting the Autopilot speed offset.

Many owners welcome this change. FSD is being refined with every update, becoming more robust, accurate, and less naggy with its requests.

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Tesla details latest safety addition with new Model Y

Tesla’s newest safety feature isn’t even visible to the human eye when you get in the new Model Y

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Tesla has detailed the addition of its latest safety feature that comes standard with the new Model Y. It is a feature that has been in development for several years and aims to assist in saving lives while also enabling other safety features.

Within the past few years, Tesla has been developing an in-cabin radar that was aimed at detecting humans left in the vehicle that typical cameras would not detect. It was a feature that was initially developed to save the lives of children, who die a handful of times each year from being left in cabins without air conditioning.

Teslarati first reported on the development of an in-cabin radar system several years ago through Federal Communications Commission (FCC) documents, which showed Tesla was hoping to gain approval for a wave sensor that would detect heartbeats instead of relying on cameras.

Tesla safety tech takes giant step with FCC approval for wave sensor

The company has started using the in-cabin radar system with the new Model Y, which has been available in the U.S. for several months. Tesla has released the new Model Y Owner’s Manual online, which gives us a first-hand look at the details it released on the various advancements it has made with the newest version of the best-selling vehicle in the world.

Credit: Tesla

As shown above, the Model Y’s new cabin radar is located above the rearview mirror and behind the ceiling gear shifter buttons.

Tesla describes its duties:

“Cabin radar can detect the presence of people inside the vehicle and use the measurements to determine occupancy. Cabin radar supports certain vehicle and safety features, including driver detection, seat occupancy, Occupant Classification System (OCS), and auto parking brake engagement.”

Interestingly, Tesla has added that it will be able to enable auto parking brake engagement, a great feature for when someone exits the vehicle. In the past, we knew it would handle driver and occupant protection, but we did not recognize its value as a way to enable a parking brake.

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Tesla’s Elon Musk clarifies shocking Optimus fact

Musk clarified that while Optimus is already impressive today, it is still very far from its planned final form.

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Credit: Tesla Optimus/X

This week has been a tour de force of Tesla Optimus demonstrations. But even with the humanoid robot’s already impressive capabilities, CEO Elon Musk dropped a comment that truly made Optimus even more exciting. 

Inasmuch as Optimus today is likely one of the most advanced humanoid robots in the industry, it is still nothing close to what Tesla really wants to create.

Optimus Demonstrations

Optimus’ demonstrations this week caught headlines because they showed the humanoid robot performing impressive dance moves. Initially, a video posted by Elon Musk on social media platform X showed Optimus dancing while being tethered to a cable. A follow up video upped the ante, with Optimus performing actual ballet moves without any support.

Comments from Tesla Vice President of Optimus (Tesla Bot) Milan Kovac revealed that the humanoid robot’s movements were fully learned in simulation and zero-shot transferred to real without extra training. Elon Musk later joked that he would be accompanied by a troupe of dancing Optimus robots at the 2024 Tesla Annual Shareholder Meeting.

Not Even Close

But in another follow-up comment on X, Musk clarified that while Optimus is already impressive today, it is still very far from its planned final form. This was quite surprising as the humanoid robot is already in initial production at the Fremont Factory. Even in its current state, Optimus also looks production-ready. Elon Musk even noted that Optimus robots are just walking around Tesla’s factories today around the clock, charging themselves as needed.

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Credit: @heydave7/X

With this in mind, one could wonder what Optimus’ final form could really be like. While the humanoid robot’s current iteration is already pretty sleek, perhaps Tesla is still developing Optimus until its appearance could mirror the robot’s static display model that the company showed off back in 2021. That Optimus model featured very human proportions and joints, making it look more like an android from a sci-fi flick than a humanoid robot with obvious mechanical parts.

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