Report says SpaceX and xAI are purchasing Tesla’s unsold Cybertrucks

SpaceX and xAI purchase unsold Cybertrucks

Multiple reports and social-media posts indicate that SpaceX, and possibly xAI, are purchasing Cybertrucks for internal fleets; Tesla hasn’t disclosed volumes. Hundreds of these electric pickup trucks have already been sent to their facilities to deal with Tesla’s huge inventory problem.

This internal purchase plan helps to move the growing number of Cybertrucks that American consumers have chosen not to buy this year. Analysts now expect a much lower 2025 total than early hype suggested; third-party estimates indicate a modest run-rate relative to initial targets.

Using the trucks to replace old gas fleets

The official reason for this large internal purchase is to replace older, gas-powered support vehicles at the company sites. Wes Morrill, the lead engineer for the Cybertruck, confirmed that the trucks will replace the existing ICE support fleets (Internal Combustion Engine) at the facilities.

SpaceX has already received several hundred Cybertrucks at its central Starbase location in Texas. Analysts expect the space company to continue buying, potentially adding more than a thousand units to its fleet in the coming months.

A massive decline in third quarter sales

Cybertruck sales struggled in the third quarter of 2025, reaching only 5,385 units delivered to customers in the U.S. This small number highlights a serious ongoing issue with people adopting the expensive electric pickup.

This Q3 2025 number shows a massive decline of 62.6% compared to the third quarter of 2024, which saw 14,416 units delivered. This sudden drop occurred just before the internal company purchases began in October 2025. The Q3 2025 sales put the Cybertruck’s share of the U.S. EV market at 1.2%, a drop from 1.5% a year earlier.

Cybertruck inventory reaches record high

By May 2025, the total inventory of unsold Cybertrucks in the United States had climbed dramatically to more than 10,000 units at the Texas Gigafactory. This large number of excess vehicles set a new record high for the new model. The large number of unsold trucks holds a substantial financial value for the company.

Because the Cybertruck is sold directly to customers, official inventory numbers are not released, but industry estimates point to a significant oversupply. The most popular Tesla vehicle, the Model Y, continues to dominate the company’s sales with 265,068 units delivered year-to-date in 2025.

Sales plummet in the second quarter of 2025

The second quarter of 2025 saw a significant downturn in Cybertruck deliveries, which fell to just 4,306 units nationwide. This very low figure signals a serious and worsening problem with demand for the truck.

This delivery number for Q2 2025 shows a drop in sales of over 50% compared to the 8,755 units sold during the second quarter of 2024. Sales in the first quarter of 2025 were slightly higher at 6,406 units delivered, the strongest quarterly performance of the year. The Model 3 also had a slower year in 2025, with 155,180 sales in the first nine months.

Falling far short of production targets

Tesla had ambitious plans to produce hundreds of thousands of Cybertrucks yearly at the Gigafactory Texas plant. The company’s initial annual production capacity for the truck is now listed at 125,000 units annually.

Because total deliveries for 2025 are now expected to be under 20,000 trucks, the current rate means the assembly line only runs at about 16% of the company’s published capacity goal.

This shows a big gap, as the production line sells fewer than 5,000 monthly units as of September 2025. Early production estimates from Elon Musk had predicted annual sales numbers between 250,000 and 500,000 units.

How the Cybertruck compares to rivals in sales

In the third quarter of 2025, the Cybertruck only ranked fourth in total sales in the U.S. electric pickup market. It sold just 5,385 units in the three months. The best-selling electric truck was the Ford F-150 Lightning, which sold 10,005 units, making it the market leader.

The GMC Hummer EV sold 4,805 units in Q3 2025, and the Chevrolet Silverado EV sold 3,940 units in the same quarter. The total year-to-date sales for the Cybertruck in 2025 reached 16,097 units. The company is considering a smaller Cybertruck variant, potentially tailored for markets like China and the European Union.

The market grew while Cybertruck sales fell

The total U.S. market for all electric vehicles showed a considerable increase in the third quarter of 2025. More Americans bought electric cars in Q3 2025 than ever, with 438,487 units sold. Overall EV sales across the country are significant at 29.6% compared to the third quarter of 2024.

In sharp contrast, the Cybertruck’s sales fell drastically in that same period by 62.6%. The growth in overall EV sales pushed the electric vehicle market share to 10.5% of all new vehicle sales, a new record. Tesla’s total EV market share fell to 41% in Q3 2025, down from 49% in Q3 2024.

Sales success of a key competitor

The Ford F-150 Lightning electric truck showed strong sales and increasing demand during the third quarter of 2025. It is a significant and successful competitor to the Cybertruck, selling 10,005 units in that quarter.

Sales for the Lightning grew by an impressive 39.7% year-over-year in the third quarter compared to its Q3 2024 total. This success happened while the Cybertruck was experiencing a sharp drop in its market demand, losing market share in the electric pickup segment. The F-150 Lightning’s total sales reached 23,024 units in the first nine months of 2025, a 1% increase over the same period last year.

Total Cybertruck deliveries in 2024

In the full 12 months of 2024, Tesla delivered an estimated total of roughly 38,965 Cybertrucks to customers across the world. This marked the very first full year of sales for the electric vehicle. This official estimate comes from a reputable industry tracker and is higher than the original estimate.

The new estimated total deliveries of under 20,000 units for the full year of 2025 represent a projected drop in sales of more than 48% from the total delivered in the previous year.

The two million reservation hype

The Cybertruck created huge consumer interest right after its public reveal in 2019. By the time the first customer deliveries finally began in late 2023, the truck had accumulated over two million refundable reservations from interested buyers. The original deposit price for the reservation was a low $100.

Despite this tremendous early excitement, the truck has struggled with very slow sales in 2025. The company shut down the reservation process in August 2024, as the truck became more readily available for delivery in the U.S. The latest RWD model of the truck, released in April 2025, was priced at $69,990.

When Cybertruck production first began

The initial official manufacturing of the Tesla Cybertruck occurred at the company’s central facility in Austin, known as Gigafactory Texas. The truck is built using a very thick stainless steel body. The first production-ready Cybertruck officially rolled off the Texas assembly line on July 15, 2023.

This was close to four years after the futuristic truck was first shown to the public on the stage in California in 2019. The Cybertruck’s sales make it a niche contributor to Tesla’s total vehicle portfolio, as the company’s full-year 2024 total deliveries were 1,789,226 vehicles.

Difference between price promise and reality

When the Cybertruck was first shown to the world in 2019, the price for the most basic model was initially promised to start at around $39,900. However, the starting price for the cheapest Rear-Wheel-Drive model, which was released in early 2025, was much higher at $60,990.

This lowers the initial promised price by more than $21,000. The most expensive version of the truck, the Cyberbeast, starts at $99,990. The initial AWD model was priced at $79,990, and the AWD and Cyberbeast were first scheduled for release in 2024.

Cybertruck’s features power and towing

The top-of-the-line Cyberbeast model and the regular All-Wheel Drive model of the Cybertruck are designed with a high maximum towing capacity. Both powerful versions of the truck are rated to pull exactly 11,000 pounds.

The impressive Cyberbeast version of the truck has 845 horsepower and can go from a standstill to 60 miles per hour in a speedy 2.6 seconds. The regular AWD model takes 4.1 seconds to reach 60 mph. The cheapest RWD version, which has less power, has an estimated range of 250 miles with a top speed of 112 mph.

Struggling to understand why coverage is so tricky? Check out Tesla Cybertruck faces insurance coverage challenges.

Future cost reduction plans for the Cybertruck

Tesla is dealing with large battery companies, like LG Energy Solution, to get supplies of its advanced 4680 battery cells for its future trucks. This is a key part of the plan to cut manufacturing costs. The company’s in-house 4680 battery cell manufacturing team reached a significant milestone by the end of 2024.

The team achieved the lowest cost per kilowatt-hour (kWh) for any battery cell produced by Tesla. The company’s roadmap set a goal to reduce the overall battery cost by over 50% across five areas of effort by 2026. The 4680 battery form factor has a potential 14% cost reduction from its new design.

Wondering why prices are crashing and dealers can’t keep up? Read more in falling Cybertruck prices leave Tesla dealers struggling.

What do you think about Elon Musk’s latest move? Drop your thoughts below.

Read More From This Brand:

• Tesla Drops a Surprise on Cybertruck Owners
• Tesla scraps cheapest Cybertruck as demand falls short
• Tesla introduces lower-cost Model Y Standard variant in Europe

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This slideshow was made with AI assistance and human editing.