Tesla will start phasing out Cybertruck production at Gigafactory Texas around mid-2027, and the truck exits with a net project loss of $1.9 billion. CEO Elon Musk disclosed both figures in a post on X on Friday, saying the freed factory floor will go toward expanding Cybercab output.

The numbers behind the retreat are stark. Musk said Tesla installed tooling at Giga Texas to build 125,000 Cybertrucks a year, but sold just 70,000 units over three years. The company spent $2 billion on research and development and generated only $100 million in gross profit from sales. Do the math and the shortfall is $1.9 billion.

Why kill the truck now?

Demand never showed up. The Cybertruck has suffered from slow sales, according to The Wall Street Journal, and without it Tesla's passenger lineup shrinks to just two nameplates: the Model Y and the Model 3.

The pricing story is part of the mechanism. Tesla unveiled the Cybertruck in 2019, and the first deliveries reached customers in late 2023, according to TechCrunch. At the 2019 reveal, Tesla cited a starting price under $40,000. By the time it reached showrooms, the base price had climbed to around $60,000.

That's a 50 percent gap between promise and product. It priced out buyers, and the sales chart shows it.

What fills the factory space?

The answer is the Cybercab, Tesla's purpose-built robotaxi. Tesla has run Cybercabs on the streets of Austin, Texas for the past two months with no major incidents, according to TechCrunch, and plans to expand operations to Dallas later this month.

The commercial picture is more complicated. Tesla began deploying a small number of Cybercabs commercially in Austin in September — the same day the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration opened an audit query into whether the vehicle was properly certified for public roads. Manufacturing started at Giga Texas earlier this year.

Revenue is still distant. Musk has said material Cybercab revenue is unlikely before at least 2027. So Tesla is trading a money-losing product today for a bet whose payoff sits years out.

Is this part of a bigger shift?

Yes, and it's the third model to go. The Cybertruck is the third Tesla offering axed as the automaker pivots toward artificial intelligence and robotics, according to TechCrunch. Earlier this year, Tesla stopped building the Model S sedan and Model X SUV, then handed that factory space to Optimus, its humanoid robot program.

The pattern is consistent. Each retirement frees manufacturing capacity for AI-adjacent products: robotaxis now, robots next.

What's the strategic logic?

Strip out the noise and Tesla is consolidating. The Cybertruck burned $2 billion in development against $100 million in gross profit. The Model S and Model X were aging halo cars. What remains is a lean lineup — Model 3, Model Y — carrying the balance sheet while Musk pushes capital and factory floor toward autonomy and robotics.

The risk cuts both ways. Musk's own timeline puts meaningful Cybercab revenue no earlier than 2027, and regulators are still probing the vehicle's certification. If robotaxi economics arrive late, Tesla will have traded proven, if slow-selling, products for a promise.

Still, 70,000 units in three years against 125,000 in annual capacity left Tesla little choice. The Cybertruck ran at roughly 19 percent of its planned output rate. No volume manufacturer carries tooling that idle.

The wind-down begins around the middle of 2027. Until then, Cybertrucks keep rolling out of Austin — slowly.