Tesla's much-hyped Robotaxi — the Cybercab — has been popping up on Bay Area highways, and the reviews from people who've actually seen it in person are... not great.
The latest sighting, on the 880, confirms what photos have been hinting at for months: this thing is tiny. Like, Little Tikes Cozy Coupe tiny. Whatever imposing futuristic vision Elon Musk was selling at those flashy unveil events, the reality rolling down a freeway looks more like a concept car that escaped the auto show floor before anyone finished designing it.
As one Bay Area resident put it, "Tesla's design language could best be described as 'Unfinished.'"
Hard to argue.
The Cybercab doubles down on the angular, low-poly aesthetic of the Cybertruck — a vehicle that has become less a status symbol and more a punchline. And there are some genuinely baffling choices here. Why does a cab only have two doors? If you're building a vehicle whose entire purpose is shuttling passengers, maybe make it easy for passengers to get in and out? Just a thought.
Then there's the tech question. Sharp-eyed observers have noticed what appears to be a lidar unit mounted on top of the test vehicles — interesting, given that Musk has spent years loudly insisting that lidar is a crutch and that Tesla's camera-only approach is superior. One local noted the irony: Tesla appears to be using lidar to validate its camera system "all the while their CEO trashes lidar and says they don't need it." Make it make sense.
Look, we're pro-innovation. Competition in the autonomous vehicle space is a good thing, and Waymo could use a serious rival to keep prices honest and service expanding. But competition means actually delivering a product people trust and want to ride in — not just generating hype cycles and highway sightings.
Right now, Waymo has hundreds of vehicles operating commercially in San Francisco. Tesla has a weird little two-door spotted on the 880.
The market doesn't care about vibes. It cares about results.

