Tesla Model X and S Are Done — Cybercab Is the Future
The Tesla Model S and Model X are almost gone. Just a few hundred units remain in inventory, and Elon Musk has confirmed that custom orders are officially closed. After more than a decade of shaping how the world views electric vehicles, two of Tesla's most iconic cars are quietly riding off into the sunset. What fills the void is something far more ambitious — and far more uncertain.
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| Credit: Kirsten Korosec |
The End of an Era: Why Tesla Is Walking Away From Its Flagship Models
Tesla's decision to discontinue the Model S and Model X did not come out of nowhere. Sales had been declining for years. At their peak in 2017, the two models combined for over 101,000 vehicles sold. By 2025, that figure had collapsed to roughly 50,850 — a number that now also includes the Cybertruck, which is folded into Tesla's "other models" reporting category.
Meanwhile, the Model 3 and Model Y took over completely. These more affordable, higher-volume vehicles became the engine of Tesla's growth, helping the company deliver 1.63 million vehicles globally in 2025. Against that backdrop, the writing had been on the wall for the S and X for some time.
Musk first announced the end of production for both models back in January 2026. The confirmation this week that only unsold inventory remains is simply the final chapter of a story that started years ago.
A Look Back at What the Model S and Model X Actually Did for Tesla
It is easy to forget just how transformative these two cars were. The Model S launched in 2012 as Tesla's first serious volume electric vehicle. Before it arrived, electric cars were largely dismissed as glorified golf carts. The Model S changed that perception almost overnight. It was fast, it was luxurious, and it forced legacy automakers — who had long ignored the EV market — to start paying close attention.
The Model X followed in fall 2015. Musk himself famously described it as the Fabergé egg of electric vehicles, and he was not entirely joking. In a press interview held just an hour before the Model X delivery event, Musk admitted he was not sure anyone should actually build such a complicated car. The falcon-wing doors, the panoramic windshield, the sheer engineering ambition — it was a vehicle that pushed boundaries in ways that were both impressive and, at times, impractical.
But it worked. The Model X opened Tesla up to a new demographic and laid the groundwork for what came next: the mass-market push that would define the company's next decade.
Tesla's Growth Has Stalled — And That Is the Real Backdrop Here
It would be tempting to view the end of the Model S and X as a triumphant pivot, but the broader context is more complicated. Tesla's overall growth has not just slowed — it has reversed. The company reported delivering 1.69 million vehicles in 2025, down for the second consecutive year.
In the first quarter of 2026, Tesla delivered 358,023 EVs globally. That is roughly six percent more than the same period in 2025, but that comparison is against what was already the company's worst quarter in years. Analyst expectations had been set at around 368,000 deliveries. Tesla missed.
Cheaper, stripped-down versions of the Model 3 and Model Y introduced in late 2025 have helped at the margins, but they have not reversed the trend. In the meantime, China's BYD overtook Tesla as the world's top-selling EV manufacturer in 2025, delivering 2.26 million electric vehicles. The competitive pressure is real and growing.
Musk Is Not Building Another Car — He Is Betting on a Robot and a Robotaxi
Here is where things get genuinely interesting. Rather than filling the gap left by the Model S and X with a traditional electric vehicle, Musk walked away from earlier plans to produce a lower-cost EV priced around $25,000. Instead, he has placed two very large bets: the Optimus humanoid robot and the Cybercab autonomous vehicle.
The Fremont, California factory — which currently produces the Model S and X — is expected to shift to Optimus robot production once the final vehicles roll off the line. The Cybercab, meanwhile, is slated to begin mass production this month at Tesla's facility in Austin, Texas.
Musk has been direct about his thesis. He believes Tesla is not an automaker. It is an artificial intelligence company. And the Cybercab is the clearest expression of that vision.
What Exactly Is the Cybercab — and Why Is It So Risky?
The Cybercab is a two-seat, all-electric autonomous vehicle. It has no steering wheel. It has no pedals. It was designed from the ground up to operate without any human driver. The first unit came off the assembly line in February 2026, and Tesla has said mass production begins this month.
That is the optimistic version of events. The reality on the ground is considerably more complicated.
First, there is a regulatory problem. Federal motor vehicle safety standards in the United States currently require vehicles to have steering wheels and pedals. There is no publicly available evidence that Tesla has even applied for an exemption from these requirements — a process that takes time and is far from guaranteed. Without that exemption, the Cybercab cannot legally operate on public roads.
Second, there is the technology question. The Cybercab will rely on Tesla's Full Self-Driving software to navigate city streets and safely transport passengers. Despite years of development and real-world testing, FSD has not yet demonstrated the kind of reliability at scale that autonomous commercial operations require. Limited driverless robotaxi tests in Austin have offered early proof of concept, but proof of concept is not the same as a deployable, citywide service.
Third, even if the technology works, the operational complexity remains. In states like California, companies that want to charge fares for driverless rides need specific permits. Navigating that regulatory landscape is its own multi-year challenge.
One useful data point: another autonomous vehicle company recently received a federal safety exemption that allows it to operate custom-built robotaxis — without steering wheels or pedals — on public roads. That company is now working through a separate public process to extend that exemption to commercial operations. If that path succeeds, it may help establish a regulatory template that Tesla can follow. But it also underscores how far the industry still has to go.
Musk's Vision Is Bold. The Timeline Is the Question.
Musk made the case to shareholders during Tesla's January 2026 earnings call. His argument is essentially this: in the near future, the overwhelming majority of miles driven will be autonomous. Human-controlled driving will be the exception, not the rule — perhaps as little as one to five percent of all miles traveled. The Cybercab, optimized for low cost per mile and designed for heavy commercial use, is positioned to dominate that future.
It is a compelling vision. It is also one that Tesla has been promising for longer than most people remember. Full self-driving has been "one year away" in various forms since at least 2016. Cybercab production timelines have already shifted before. In Tesla's history, ambitious deadlines have a way of moving.
None of that means the vision is wrong. It means the execution risk is high — and investors, regulators, and consumers are all watching closely.
What This Moment Actually Means for Tesla
The end of the Model S and Model X is more than a product discontinuation. It marks a philosophical rupture. Tesla is no longer trying to be a better version of a traditional car company. It is trying to be something that has never existed before: a vertically integrated AI company that builds the robots, writes the software, operates the fleet, and eventually — if Musk is right — redefines how human beings move through the world.
The Model S proved that electric cars could be desirable. The Model X proved they could be aspirational. The Cybercab is supposed to prove they can be autonomous, affordable, and ubiquitous.
Whether it can deliver on that promise is the defining question of Tesla's next chapter. And the answer will come from a factory in Austin, Texas, sometime very soon.
