Tesla’s stainless steel Cybertruck made its limited debut on Thursday afternoon, roughly two years later than its initial estimated release date. To celebrate, Elon Musk hosted a livestreamed delivery event at his company’s Giga Texas factory.
Before Tesla’s CEO took the stage, pre-taped footage shown during the launch event included the Cybertruck traversing a variety of off-road vistas including a snowscape and sepia-filtered desert, idling in front of a cinematic sunset (or sunrise), towing SpaceX rocket parts, dramatically driving in circles, and being riddled with machine gun bullets. Later, per Newsweek, Musk told the audience, “In movies you sometimes see the hero or heroine hiding behind the car door while being shot with bullets. That doesn’t actually work unless you’re driving a Cybertruck. So, if Al Capone showed up with a Tommy gun and emptied the entire magazine into the car door, you would still be alive.”
The CEO delivered brief remarks before escorting the first 30 owners into their new electric vehicles, occasionally seeming to struggle with the handleless passenger side doors as smiling owners entered their new sharp-edged EVs. “It’s not just some grandstanding showpiece like me. It’s actually very useful,” Musk promised as the camera appeared to struggle to remain focused on the afternoon’s emcee. “How tough is your truck?” Musk rhetorically asked unnamed, rival carmakers, speaking into the direction of the audience. The challenge drew an enthusiastic response from dozens of attendees. Later, Musk repeatedly stressed the new, angular truck’s utility and durability.
During the Cybertruck’s official unveiling four years’ ago, Tesla vehicle designer Franz von Holzhausen hurled metal balls at a prototype to illustrate the EV’s “Armor Glass” enhancement, causing the driver side windows to shatter. Von Holzhausen demonstrated a similar exercise on Thursday afternoon, tossing a baseball at the Cybertruck twice. The windows did not appear to break this time.
[Related: Elon Musk says ‘we dug our own grave with Cybertruck’ ahead of its November release.]
“Here at Tesla we have the finest in apocalypse technology,” Musk declared to his excited fans at one point. Additional sizzle reel clips also highlighted the Cybertruck’s acceleration and towing capabilities. It apparently can outrace a 2023 Porsche 911 while towing an identical luxury vehicle for at least a quarter-mile.
“Experts said it was impossible,” Musk recounted of the Cybertruck’s design phase. Previously, critics have repeatedly voiced concerns about the Cybertruck’s potential safety issues and reports of numerous production woes allegedly costing Tesla billions of dollars. During an October 2023 earnings call, Musk cautioned shareholders and customers to “temper expectations” about Cybertruck’s initial profitability, adding that, “we dug our own grave with Cybertruck.” But here it finally was.
Several tweets following the one containing yesterday’s livestream declared, “CAN’T WAIT! It’s basically the most badass car [that] ever existed! ❤️🔥🫶” and “LFG!!! Hope I can afford one.🤞🏻”
When first announced in 2019, Tesla’s website briefly listed the Cybertruck’s estimated starting price as $39,990 before removing the amount. Now, its base model officially costs $60,990.
“It’s going to be amazing to see all these cars driving around,” Musk said near his presentation’s end as the 30 vehicles departed the showroom. “This is really going to change the look of the roads.”