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In the latest development, a Tesla executive has confronted rumors about the cancellation of the much-anticipated $25,000 electric vehicle. This follows CEO Elon Musk's rebuttal of claims made by Reuters, adding another layer of intrigue to Tesla's plans.
Tesla Clarifies Rumors on $25,000 EV's Fate Amidst Speculation Over Robotaxi Synergy
Reuters reported (via Teslarati) last week that sources had informed it that Tesla was canceling plans for its $25,000 electric vehicle. Musk denied the reports, claiming that "Reuters is lying (again)," and later announced that he and Tesla would unveil the upcoming robotaxi on August 8, 2024. The move has prompted many shareholders and Tesla enthusiasts to speculate that the robotaxi and the $25,000 EV could be built on the same platform, to which Musk responded on X with the "eyes" emoji, implying that it could be a good idea.
On April 7, Tesla's Chief Designer Franz von Holzhausen was confronted with questions about the status of the affordable mass-market EV. The queries were raised in a video by X user BLKMDL3, which captured a panel discussion at the Petersen Auto Museum featuring von Holzhausen, Ben from Unplugged Tesla, and Russell from Michelin. The video leaves the status of the $25,000 car open to interpretation, with no clear confirmation of its cancellation, delay, or continuation.
While von Holzhausen did not respond as directly as Musk did, he was quick to question the Reuters report.
"I would just stay tuned," von Holzhausen said during the discussion. "Just don't always believe what you read."
Tesla Advances on Autonomy with FSD v12 Rollout Amid $25K EV Cancellation Buzz
According to a source, the original Reuters report claimed that the publication had reviewed messages from Tesla to suppliers about the project and a message from a Tesla manager who specifically mentioned the cancellation of the $25,000 EV. The news comes as Tesla has begun to roll out its long-awaited Full Self-Driving v12 to customers, which Musk and others touted last year as a critical component in unlocking the puzzle of autonomy.
In addition to the FSD fleet exceeding one billion miles last week, the software has changed its name from "beta" to "FSD (Supervised)," after Musk stated the previous year that v12 would drop the beta label. A leaked email from Musk also mandated that Tesla employees use FSD demo drives with deliveries, and the company is now offering one-month free trials of the software.
Tesla will hold its Q1 2024 earnings call on April 23, following the announcement of its EV production and delivery numbers for the quarter last week.
Photo: BoliviaInteligente/Unsplash
