Tesla is most famous for being an electric car maker. But that might all change soon after CEO Elon Musk revealed that the company is looking to move away from building EVs.
On Wednesday, Musk announced an end to Tesla’s Model S and Model X EVs with production ‘winding down next quarter’.
Instead, the Fremont factory in California where the electric executive saloons and SUVs have been manufactured will be converted into a facility that can assemble Tesla’s upcoming Optimus robot.
Tesla will also redirect its focus to self-driving vehicles as ‘a lot of our investors asked us to do this’, Musk said.
The divisive Tesla boss added: ‘It’s time to bring the Model S and X program to an end with an honorable discharge, because we’re really moving into a future that’s based on autonomy.’
The decision to kill off some of the brand’s pioneering EVs and shift to making robots and developing AI comes after Tesla saw its total revenue fall by three per cent in 2025 while profits tumbled by a 61 per cent.
Elon Musk has announced an end to Tesla’s Model S and Model X EVs with production ‘winding down next quarter’. They were two of the first Tesla models to take to the roads
The two soon-to-be-discontinued EVs will remain available to buy across markets as long as there are units available, with Tesla promising to support them for as long as people have them.
It might sound drastic to stop making the two cars, but taking a step back isn’t that different to when other legacy automotive manufacturers discontinue outdated models.
The Model S is Tesla’s second ever vehicle and has been in production since 2012. It arrived in the UK in early summer 2014.
The Model X SUV has been in production since 2015, arriving in Britain in 2016.
Both cars have not been sold in the UK for almost three years.
In 2023, Tesla cancelled all existing UK orders for both the Model S and Model X.
Customers who had their orders scrapped were given the option of taking a left-hand-drive Model S or X, a £2,000 contribution towards switching to a smaller Model 3 or Model Y – or cancelling their order entirely and receiving a full refund on their deposit.
The Model 3 and Model Y have very much taken over the mantle for Tesla ever since.
The Model Y is Tesla’s best-selling vehicle in Britain – and globally. In fact, it was crowned the best-selling car in the world across all fuel types in 2023.
The Model S is Tesla’s second ever vehicle and has been in production since 2012. It arrived in the UK in early summer 2014. Stocks of this, and the Model X will be available until they run out
The Model X SUV has been in production since 2015, arriving in Britain in 2016. In 2023, Tesla cancelled all existing UK orders for right-hand-drive Model X and Model S cars and wound up their availability. Customers in Britain who wanted one had to buy a LHD vehicle
Despite disappearing from UK showrooms, both vehicles make up a significant chunk of Tesla’s sales.
While the company delivered 1,585,279 Model 3 and Y vehicles globally in 2025, it also shipped 418,227 examples of the Model S and X in what will be their final calendar year of availability.
It hasn’t helped matters that Tesla was forced to stop selling the Model S and X in China in mid-2025 because the EVs were being imported from the US.
They became subject to the tariffs China imposed in retaliation to US President Donald Trump’s tariffs on imported goods.
Overall, the company’s total automotive revenues dropped 11 per cent year-over-year in 2025.
Tesla’s earnings report described the disappointing year as a ‘transition from a hardware-centric business to a physical AI company’.
Tesla Cybercab isn’t a car for you to drive in the normal sense of the word, it’s an autonomous taxi that will ferry people around and drive people into the future. During the UK unveiling, Tesla said the Cybercab will make electric transport ‘democratised, affordable and fully autonomous’
Tesla Cybercab – a self-driving Tesla is on the way
The Cybercab – a sleeker, more squared off version of the Model 3 with scissor doors – is ‘a fully autonomous robotaxi designed to offer premium, individualised point-to-point electric mobility for everyone’.
The two-seater taxi aims to make Tesla and ride-hailing ‘more accessible and more affordable’ because making transport ‘accessible to all is essential for the future’.
It will come with smart summon and auto park, and ‘you will be able to rent it for as long as you need – a quick trip or a whole day’.
In keeping with this the taxi will be bike friendly, and able to hold two carry-on bags and two checked bags.
The Cybercab is a golden, ultra sleek, and – arguably – more stylish version of the Model 3 which is fully autonomous
There are just two seats and a large landscape touchscreen and no pedals or steering wheel
Being fully automated, there are no pedals and no steering wheel to use.
The Model 3 and Model Y already have many of the self-driving safety features the Cybercab utilises. Tesla has said that owners of these EVs will therefore be able to rent their cars out when the autonomous tech is made available via over-the-air updates.
Dates aren’t known yet (this is Tesla after all) but it’s touted for a 2026 release in the US.
However, don’t get your hopes up too much to see it debut this year, with Tesla notorious for failing to deliver on arrival dates.
The second-generation Tesla Roadster, for instance, was originally unveiled as a prototype on 16 November 2017.
At that time, Musk promised that the vehicle would enter production and be available for sale in 2020.
It’s now due to be shown on 1 April 2026 – though there is still no confirmation of this.
