Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) CEO Elon Musk has said that the Cybercab’s electric motor operates without using any rare earth metals in its design, touting it as a major milestone for the EV giant.
Rare-Earth-Free Design
On Thursday, Tesla investor and influencer Sawyer Merritt took to X, sharing details about the Cybercab’s electric motor, which was “18% smaller, 25% lighter and more efficient” than its counterparts.
Musk, quoting Merritt’s post, touted its design. “The Cybercab motor uses no rare earth metals, but maintains the same range!” he said. “This was extremely hard to achieve,” the CEO added.
The move could help Tesla overcome supply chain issues, as the President Donald Trump administration’s uncertain views on tariffs on China could cause restrictions on the movement of rare-earth magnets, which has happened in the past. China dominates the global rare-earth supply chain, particularly processing and permanent-magnet production.
Gary Black Remains Skeptical on Cybercab
Despite bullish takes by both Musk and investor Gene Munster of Deepwater Asset Management, investor Gary Black remains skeptical about the vehicle. “Despite efforts to control the narrative, $TSLA ‘s Cybercab event was largely a bust,” the investor said on Thursday in a post on X.
The Future Fund LLC co-founder decried the lack of detail from the event. He also shared that “key questions remained unanswered following the event, including how many vehicles the company plans to deploy.”
The investor also posted an excerpt from a Bloomberg article published on Thursday, which pointed to regulatory uncertainty due to the Cybercab’s non-traditional vehicle controls (the absence of a steering wheel and pedals).
Musk Touts New Era
Following the Cybercab launch, Musk said that the event marked a “golden era” in transportation. He had earlier also said that the vehicle was more efficient than rival Alphabet Inc.‘s (NASDAQ:GOOGL) (NASDAQ:GOOG) sixth-generation Waymo Robotaxis.
Price Action: TSLA shares fell 1.64% to $370.19 during overnight trading on Thursday.
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