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Tesla Van, revised Cybertruck, Tesla Boat — Here’s what could be coming
Tesla CEO Elon Musk confirmed during the company’s most recent Earnings Call on Wednesday that the automaker has “other products” being developed. Of course, Musk did not shed any detail on them, but based on what the company might need, and what others have said in the past, we have an idea of what they could be.
Musk said:
“I should also say that there — we have other products in development. We’re not going to announce them, obviously, but they’re very exciting. And I think it will blow people’s minds when they — when we reveal them. Tesla has the most exciting product road map of any company on earth by a long shot.”
A Tesla Van
A Tesla Van might be in the product roadmap, especially as Musk has hinted toward the idea on several occasions. In late 2018, Musk stated that it may be “interesting to work with Daimler/Mercedes on an electric Sprinter.”
In early 2021, Musk reiterated this point while speaking on the Q4 and Full Year 2020 Earnings Call, stating, “I think Tesla is definitely going to make an electric van at some point.”
While a Tesla Van might be a great idea for some personal applications, this would be something that would undoubtedly be used as a commercial vehicle. To this day, Sprinter vans are utilized by a variety of companies, from auto parts stores, to car detailing businesses. However, Tesla may find the biggest application for it internally.
(Credit: teslaguru2/Instagram)
Still utilizing some Ford Transit vans and some Model S and Model X vehicles, among others, for its Mobile Service fleet, Tesla would undoubtedly see several advantages from developing a van. For one, Tesla still struggles with Service, especially at physical locations. With the company delivering over 1.3 million cars last year and only growing its Store and Service locations by 120 this past year, or ten a month, Mobile Service could be the company’s key to improving its overall effectiveness.
The Mobile Service fleet grew 24 percent in 2022 compared to 2021, with 303 additional units added last year alone. However, this could likely increase further if Tesla developed and built its own Service vehicles, and let’s face it, they’d be much more cost-effective than leasing expensive Service locations.
A Tesla Van would also enter a market with relatively small amounts of competition. Currently, the E-Transit holds 73 percent of the segment, with 6,500 sales last year. Offering only 236 miles of range in its Custom offering, the E-Transit could be challenged by a Tesla Van.
A ‘More Traditional’ Pickup
This one is a bit of a long shot, but it could definitely still happen. Musk stated in an interview with Automotive News in 2020 that if the Tesla Cybertruck was a flop, the company could develop a more “traditional” pickup design.
“If it turns out nobody wants to buy a weird-looking truck, we’ll build a normal truck, no problem,” he said.
An artist’s render of the Tesla Pickup Truck. (Credit: Emre Husman)
With over a million pre-orders currently, it does not seem as if Tesla will do this, at least not any time in the near future. However, Chief Designer Franz von Holzhausen, who confirmed the Cybertruck design was finalized, did state Tesla never really puts a “pencils down” approach to the subject.
While the whole idea behind the Cybertruck was to break the mold of traditional pickup designs, some may want to continue with Tesla’s expertise in EVs while having something slightly more “normal.” But, in my estimation, don’t hold your breath.
A Tesla Boat
In regards to Tesla’s “ecological paradise,” Musk told us in September that the company filed to expand Gigafactory Texas from the southern portion to make way for this project. Visitors would be able to float down the Colorado River to downtown Austin.
But instead of Tesla Kayaks, Musk said the company could develop “electric Tesla boats with a retro-futuristic Victorian design.”
Musk has already hinted that the Cybertruck will likely be able to float and navigate through water, at least to an extent. However, it seems that a boat could be developed for at least the company’s internal projects, like the “ecological paradise” it plans to build outside of the Texas Gigafactory.
$25,000 Mass-Market Sedan
Heavily rumored as a Tesla project for several years, the $25,000 vehicle is the company’s key to mass affordability for many consumers.
When Chevrolet announced huge cuts on the Bolt EV and EUV last year, it became one of the most affordable EVs you can buy, and it was a car that was recognized as a major needle mover in terms of EV adoption simply because it showed consumers that you don’t have to spend upwards of $40,000 on an EV.
Credit: Alwinart/Twitter
However, the vehicle is not a rumor, and it’s definitely something Tesla is looking toward developing soon. Musk said last year:
“Well, we’re not currently working on the — on a $25,000 car. We — you know, at some point, we will, but we have enough on our plate right now, too much on our plate, frankly. So, you know, at some point, there will be.”
The $25,000 Tesla will likely be a part of the company’s next-gen platform, which will be discussed during the Investor Day on March 1. Musk once again confirmed during the Q4 and Full Year 2022 Earnings Call that this will be on the agenda for the event.
What won’t happen: a Tesla Motorcycle
While Tesla did unveil a Tesla CyberATV at the Cybertruck event in 2019, Musk said Tesla will never develop an electric motorcycle.
“I had a road bike until I was 17 and was almost killed by a truck,” Musk said. “So we’re not going to do motorcycles.”
The Bottom Line
Of course, we already know Tesla is developing a new version of the Model 3 within Project Highland. While this could be more of an internal revamp than anything, just as the Model S and Model X refreshes were, there are undoubtedly plenty of things in the works.
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Tesla exec hints at a wild fix for Robotaxi’s biggest weather problem
Tesla VP Lars Moravy says focused lasers could keep robotaxi cameras clear instead of wipers.
Tesla may one day use lasers instead of wiper blades to keep its robotaxi cameras clear. Lars Moravy, Tesla’s Vice President of Vehicle Engineering, floated the idea in a new episode of Jay Leno’s Garage released Monday, where he and design chief Franz von Holzhausen walked Leno through the Model Y L.
“If you fire them in a focused area, you can clean the sheet of water and create a barrier,” Moravy said. “When you think about autonomy, it might be a good solution to only clean the area where the camera is.” He added that clearing an entire windshield would take too many lasers to be practical.
🚨 Jay Leno has released a new episode breaking down the Model Y L. You can watch it here: https://t.co/umMp85UEaB — TESLARATI (@Teslarati) November 9, 2026
The comment brings back one of Tesla’s stranger patents. The company filed for “Pulsed Laser Cleaning of Debris Accumulated on Glass Articles in Vehicles and Photovoltaic Assemblies” in May 2019, and the U.S. Patent Office granted it in September 2021. An updated divisional version was granted on March 31, 2026. The system detects debris on the glass, identifies what it is, and pulses the laser at a calibrated rate so the beam never penetrates deeper than the glass itself. The filing names windshields, side windows, camera lenses and solar panels as possible targets.
Lasers were once rumored for the Cybertruck, which appeared at its November 2019 unveiling with no wipers at all. Tesla eventually settled on a single oversized blade, and Elon Musk admitted the wiper was the part of the truck that troubled him the most. That production line is now scheduled to shut down around mid 2027 to make room for more Cybercab output.
What has changed since then is who is in the vehicle. A privately owned car has a driver who can notice a smeared windshield and do something about it. A Cybercab heading to its next pickup has nobody on board to check. Tesla has been chipping away at that problem with conventional hardware. Model Y Robotaxis in Austin were spotted with washers on their side repeater cameras in January, and a lens cleaning patent granted in May describes a fluid and wiper assembly for vehicle cameras and Optimus’ eyes. A laser would remove the fluid and the blades, both of which need regular replacement across a fleet.
The same episode gave Leno his first ride on Full Self-Driving (Supervised). The Model Y L pulled over on its own when an ambulance approached with its sirens on. “We got it on self-driving mode! I’m not touching anything,” Leno said. Moravy and von Holzhausen also explained that owners remain responsible while using FSD (Supervised), while Tesla takes responsibility for Robotaxi rides because it acts as the operator. Tesla launched the Model Y L in the U.S. in July at $61,990.
Moravy gave no timeline, and he described the laser setup as something Tesla is considering rather than a confirmed feature. The fleet it would serve keeps getting bigger, though. Tesla launched unsupervised Robotaxi service in San Antonio on Monday, its eighth city, and expanded its Austin service area to roughly 443 square miles on the same day. Several of those markets, including Houston, Miami and Tampa, see heavy seasonal rain.
Tesla launched unsupervised Robotaxi service in San Antonio, Texas, on November 9, 2026, with the first rides beginning at 5 a.m. local time.
The company’s official Robotaxi account on X posted the announcement just after midnight, sharing a map that outlines a large operational zone covering much of the city. The geofence is roughly 274 to 275 square miles, making it Tesla’s largest day-one Robotaxi service area to date.
🚨 Tesla just announced that Robotaxi is available in San Antonio, TX
First rides at 5am local time! https://t.co/azck6NlD8H
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) November 9, 2026
The zone centers on downtown, covers nearly everything inside Loop 410, and extends north to Loop 1604 between Interstate 10 and U.S. 281, with further reach west past State Highway 151, east beyond I-35, and south toward I-37. This area encompasses about one million residents and hundreds of thousands of jobs.
San Antonio International Airport lies inside the geofence, though Tesla is not currently offering airport pickups or drop-offs. This hopefully will happen soon, as ride-sharing to and from the airport can be expensive.
The launch makes San Antonio Tesla’s eighth unsupervised Robotaxi city and its fifth in Texas, joining Austin, Houston, Dallas, and Fort Worth. Florida markets in Miami, Orlando, and Tampa are also live.
🚨 Here’s every active geofence, by size (not including the Bay Area geofence):
• Austin: 435 sq mi (first ride Jun 22, 2025) · Cybercabs live, expanded today • San Antonio: ~275 sq mi (first ride Nov 9, 2026) • Houston: 254 sq mi (Apr 18, 2026) • Fort Worth: 143 sq mi (Nov 2, 2026) • Dallas: 81 sq mi (Apr 18, 2026) • Miami: 31 sq mi (Jul 3, 2026) • Orlando: 26 sq mi (Jul 21, 2026) • Tampa: 24 sq mi (Jul 21, 2026)
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) November 9, 2026
Service uses modified Model Y vehicles operating without a safety driver in the vehicle, consistent with recent unsupervised expansions. Cybercab two-seaters remain limited primarily to Austin for now. It’s worth noting that Dept. of Transportation officials in Texas have already ok’d the Cybercab’s operation in Austin, and one official called it “a tangible example of how quickly our transportation system is evolving.”
San Antonio was previously listed among near-term targets in Tesla’s October 2026 Robotaxi safety materials, alongside Las Vegas, Phoenix, and Jacksonville. The rapid Texas rollout follows Fort Worth’s unsupervised debut on November 2 and builds on Austin’s original launch in June 2025.
The 274-square-mile debut remains substantially larger than Waymo’s local footprint and marks continued progress in Tesla’s unsupervised autonomy efforts after starting the year with no such rides. The company has stated ambitions for broader 24/7 operations by the end of 2026 as vehicle counts and software reliability improve.
Tesla has started to perform earthworks engineering on the roughly 3,000-acre site in Fort Bend County, Texas, advancing the massive $10 billion Project Crystal Sun plan to build a vertically integrated solar manufacturing complex.
Flyover drone footage from S.E. Robinson, Jr. released this morning shows the location under development. Tesla has crews on site performing large clearings, but you can also see equipment staging areas, the use of an existing homestead, and active leveling across a substantial portion of the property.
Tesla has started construction on Project Crystal Sun, its $10B vertically integrated solar factory near Houston, Texas.
The plant will make everything from silicon ingots and wafers to finished cells and panels, with operations targeted for Q1 2029.
@SERobinsonJr with a great flyover of the facility:
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) November 9, 2026
Public filings first submitted in July under Texas’s Jobs, Energy, Technology and Innovation Act describe a plant that would manufacture the full solar chain: everything from silicon ingots, wafers, coated cells, and finished modules.
Tesla projects 9,712 permanent jobs by 2033, ramping from roughly 1,900 positions in the first year of operations, plus a peak of about 1,147 construction jobs. Construction is targeted for 2026–2028, with commercial production beginning in the first quarter of 2029. An accompanying economic analysis estimates the project could add roughly $107 billion to Texas GDP over several decades.
Local incentives have cleared major hurdles. Lamar Consolidated Independent School District unanimously approved school-tax limitations in September, and Fort Bend County commissioners approved a package of abatements and related agreements in late October that could extend equipment tax breaks for as long as 35 years.
Tesla had previously indicated it was evaluating a competing out-of-state location.
The effort fits broader statements by Musk that Tesla and SpaceX are each working toward 100 gigawatts of annual U.S. solar manufacturing capacity. If built as described, Project Crystal Sun would stand as one of the largest domestic attempts to create a fully integrated solar supply chain on American soil.
While Tesla has not issued a formal groundbreaking announcement, the visible site preparation and high-profile social media activity represent a concrete step forward for a project that has moved from confidential filings to active earthworks in a matter of months.
Tesla exec hints at a wild fix for Robotaxi’s biggest weather problem
Tesla Robotaxi enters its newest city, reaching San Antonio
