Tesla Update: Cybercab Rides, the Semi Factory and the Roadster Reveal

Three big Tesla stories landed one after another. Rides in the Cybercab, Tesla’s self-driving taxi, started in Austin, Texas, in early September. On 24 September Tesla opened its high-volume factory for the Semi, its electric truck, in Sparks, Nevada. Then, after slipping from 1 October, the next-generation Roadster sports car was finally revealed on 15 October.

Snapshot

From my dashboard on 22 October 2026:

• Tesla position: $13,602.82
• Since start: +1.65% (+$221.34 paper profit)
• What I have put in so far: about $13,381
• Still buying: £60 a week on eToro (I started at £40)
• My core tracked portfolio that day: £19,010, about 76% of my £25k goal for late 2026

Everything is live on my Experiments Dashboard, and the whole Tesla story so far is on its experiment page.

Cybercab: what happened

On 3 September 2026 Tesla held an invite-only Austin event and said Cybercab rides would run in limited areas of Austin. Two seats. No steering wheel. No pedals.

The road there started months earlier. Tesla’s own second-quarter (Q2) update says production had already begun at Gigafactory Texas, and Tesla staff rode in Cybercabs on its own campus before the Austin launch.

A month in, the fleet was growing fast. On 10 October Tesla said more than 300 Cybercabs were serving Austin, eight times as many as 30 days earlier. Then, on its third-quarter (Q3) results call on 21 October, Tesla said it plans to launch Cybercab in Dallas in November, with other cities before the end of 2026. Tesla also aims to start selling Cybercabs to customers by the end of 2026, starting small. For a car with no steering wheel, that would be a big new step.

Semi: the Sparks factory opens

On 24 September 2026 Tesla opened its dedicated high-volume Semi plant in Sparks, Nevada, right next to its existing Nevada Gigafactory. It was an invite-only ribbon-cutting, and Tesla streamed it for everyone else. On opening day, Tesla’s Semi engineering lead said the plant would bring more than 3,000 jobs as production grows.

The plant took a while to get here. In July, Tesla’s Q2 letter still listed the Nevada Semi line as being commissioned, on schedule for production in 2026. By its Q3 update, Tesla said volume production of the Semi had begun.

That Q3 update gives the Nevada Semi line an installed capacity of 25,000 trucks a year and marks it as in production. That is the most trucks the line is built to make in a year.

Roadster: the reveal

Tesla first pencilled the reveal in for 1 October, then moved it to 15 October because of a severe weather forecast. The event could only run outdoors.

Tesla calls it “a true pilot’s car” and “the last best driver’s car”. Here is what it showed off, with Tesla’s own claims in quotes:

• Track Mode with active wings, and what Tesla calls the “best passive downforce package of any road car”
• Fans that suck the car to the ground, with “enough suction to hold it upside down while stationary”
• Cold-gas thrusters, which Tesla says generate “4–5x the force the tires can”

There are three versions:

• Performance (by reservation): 2 seats, 0–60 mph in under 1.6 seconds
• Thrust (limited release): adds rear thrusters, 0–60 in under 0.9 seconds
• Rocket (invite only): 1 seat, thrusters all round, 0–60 in under 0.59 seconds. Tesla’s line is “So yes, it can fly.” Tesla’s site also says it is not approved for public road use.

Tesla quotes range over 300 miles and a top speed over 230 mph (Rocket). After the event, Tesla posted a demo run of 0–60 mph in 0.81 seconds.

There is no price or delivery date yet. On stage, Tesla’s chief executive said production would start in 2028.

If you want one, Tesla’s US reserve page asks for $5,000 up front, fully refundable, then $45,000 within 10 days. The page does not say whether the $45,000 is refundable.

Back in July, Tesla’s Q2 letter had the Roadster at the design stage, and the Q3 update still does. What is new is a reveal and a reserve page. Real production news is the next chapter I want to read.

My weekly Tesla share buy

I still buy £60 of Tesla shares every week on eToro, plus spare cash only when it is truly spare.

I buy through noisy weeks the same way I buy through quiet ones. Cybercab rides, a Semi factory opening and a Roadster reveal do not change the weekly bill. They are why I keep watching the company, and the £60 stays the same.

Links

• Tesla experiment
• Experiments Dashboard
• Updates Hub

Personal experiment only. Not financial advice. Past results are not future results.

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