Tesla’s Cybertruck got delayed again—here’s why

During an earnings call last week, Tesla CEO Elon Musk confirmed that production of its much-anticipated Cybertruck would be delayed until 2023.

First announced in 2019, the electric truck has already seen its production pushed from late 2021 to late 2022. Musk said batteries would “probably not be the limiting factor” for producing Cybertrucks, but that he worried about how to make it affordable “despite having awesome technology.” In 2019, the truck’s price tag had been quoted as $39,990.

Overall, Tesla’s fourth-quarter 2021 earnings were stronger than expected. Total revenue for the quarter was $17.72 billion instead of the expected $16.65 billion, according estimates cited by CNBC. Adjusted earnings per share were $2.54 instead of the estimated $2.37 per share. Tesla’s $17.72 billion revenue is a 65% increase from 2020 and $16 billion was generated by its auto business.

Tesla has been praised recently for being able to navigate COVID-era chip shortages by rewriting its code to work for chips that were in supply, instead of being constrained by needing specific chips. However, Tesla does not seem to have escaped the chip crisis entirely. Musk announced that Tesla would not be introducing any other new models due to concerns about remaining “chip-limited” this year. Instead, he said Tesla will focus on developing its technology for creating vehicles.