Ted

Had a reporter reach out asking for thoughts on the Cybertruck cancellation. Here's my reply and general thoughts I did launch a petition to stop the discontinuation of Cybertruck. If anything, it was more symbolic to bring Cybertruck owners together. That said, it’s gathered far more signatures that I expected, but as a currently-niche vehicle, the number probably won’t have any impact. I’ve tried to summarize my thoughts in various ways since the announcement and I think I’ve been able to sum it up. My initial video here: youtu.be/9cHH0oBEZx4 I absolutely do think this is the wrong move for the Tesla brand, and it’s not necessarily because of the removal of an under-performing product, but its a clear symbol of Tesla’s aggression towards transitioning to autonomous vehicles only. If you ask me, it is far too aggressive and I have a growing conviction that, at least in America, the population and legislators are not ready nor interested in autonomous vehicles today en masse. My post here teapaw.org/cybrtrkguy/status/2119…  Thus, by making too many too quickly, you risk a “Google Glass” scenario on steroids, where the technology came before the people (and in this case, regulatory bodies too). Trying to draw a proper comparison, I posted this: "LG is removing all of the HDMI inputs on their new TVs because they all have Netflix built in now. You’ll stream everything in the future anyways.” That’s what it feels like. HDMI ports are extremely useful today and they will be used for years to come. Why remove them now in favor of platform-locked streaming? Odd choice. As for Elon’s explanation, I don’t have a logical argument to counter his claims— the truck was profitable (his words) and the factory machinery is useful for the Cybercab. That seems to be true. However, the speed at which Musk believes Cybercab should be built doesn’t match up with my pulse on the average American sentiment as stated above. My understanding breaks when you consider Tesla is about to launch Roadster 2.0, a completely new, separate production line for automotive enthusiasts. Additionally, pickups and smaller cargo transport in the US is an absolutely massive business (contractors, hobbyists, etc), and Musk/Leadership doesn’t seem to see the autonomous-first version of this opportunity, at least anymore. They built the Cybertruck to eventually remove the steering wheel for these industries (and publicly said so), but instead of removing the steering wheel, they’ve opted to go all-in on 1-2 person passenger transport instead of conquering both. Tesla, as a company, has made itself massively successful by making vehicles that appeal to enthusiasts, in either tech or automotive (and in many cases, both). With their transition to autonomous-only vehicles, they leave those customers behind. I am one of them. I have my doubts for future support, but not enough to sell my own Cybertruck or recommend others do the same. Tesla has a great track record with servicing their existing, aging lineup, including firmware updates and service technician training for their earliest Model S and X vehicles running nearly 15-year old hardware. That said, Tesla has yet to deliver the service and support for HW3 by way of hardware replacements, but to their credit, they have recently released optimized and updated versions of FSD for HW3 (not exactly their original promise). Because of this, I certainly expect there to be proper support for years to come, but there will be an end to support for my truck at some point in the distant future. Happy to answer more questions if productive. My thoughts on Cybertruck in 2019 versus now: teapaw.org/cybrtrkguy/status/2118… A short summary on the cancellation vs Americans: teapaw.org/cybrtrkguy/status/2118…