Tesla should’ve prioritized the next-generation mass-market vehicle ahead of the Cybertruck. As a disclaimer, I’m certainly not saying I’m smarter than Elon Musk, and I most definitely have the advantage of hindsight. I will also make this argument while wearing my Cybertruck t-shirt and awaiting my delivery notification.
There is no doubt that Cybertruck is a vehicle destined for the history books; Tesla achieved what it set out to do, throwing out the old truck design and making the future look like the future. But would the future be a little kinder to Tesla now if it prioritized the next generation model, the less expensive $25,000 car, over the Cybertruck?
This decision is worth a debate among enthusiasts and critics, weighing the potential benefits and drawbacks of focusing on a niche, high-profile product over a vehicle that will allow more people to drive an EV. This editorial delves into the pros and cons of Tesla's approach, examining the implications for the company's future and the broader EV landscape.
Pros of Prioritizing Cybertruck
Market Differentiation and Branding: The Cybertruck, with its bold design and robust features, positions Tesla uniquely in the pickup truck market, a segment that has featured the same design and has been dominated by gas-powered vehicles. This move not only strengthens Tesla's brand as a leader in innovation but also attracts a new demographic of consumers who value distinctiveness and performance.
Cybertruck hits different in Matte Black
Not a Tesla App
High-Profit Margins: Pickup trucks typically offer higher profit margins than smaller cars. By prioritizing the Cybertruck, Tesla can potentially boost its profitability, providing the financial flexibility needed to fund future projects, including developing and manufacturing the next-gen platform. This strategy has been Tesla’s game plan since the Roadster, which financed the development of the Model S, and the pattern repeated.
Early Advantage: Rivian and Ford held the electric pickup truck market alone until Tesla joined the party. Ford has since significantly reduced its production goals for the Lightning, and Rivian is struggling to produce at a rate that would compete with Tesla. Tesla can now set the standard for the sector as the company plans to deliver 250,000 a year and has over a million orders.
Cons of Delaying Next-Gen "Redwood"
Missed Opportunity for Mass Market Penetration: The next-gen that is rumored to have a codename of "Redwood" is anticipated to revolutionize not just vehicle design but, more significantly, the manufacturing process. Delaying its introduction until 2025 could mean missing the opportunity to lead the EV industry towards more accessible and affordable electric vehicles, potentially slowing the global transition to sustainable transportation. Remember, Cybertruck was first introduced in 2019.
Concept of the next generation car
Not a Tesla App
Competition Catching Up: The delay allows competitors, especially those in China like BYD, to consolidate their position in the affordable EV segment. As these companies expand their global footprint, Tesla's first-mover advantage in the mass-market EV space could diminish. BYD has already overtaken Tesla in EV sales thanks largely to its affordable small, compact cars.
Potential Impact on Mission Alignment: Tesla's mission to accelerate the world's transition to sustainable energy aligns more closely with making EVs accessible to the mass market. Prioritizing a high-end, niche product like the Cybertruck over a potentially revolutionary but more accessible vehicle could be a deviation from this mission.
Strategic Considerations
Innovation in Manufacturing: Elon Musk's emphasis on the revolutionary manufacturing system for Redwood suggests that Tesla is not merely delaying an affordable car but is rethinking the entire production paradigm. This could result in efficiencies and advancements that significantly lower the cost of EVs, making them more accessible on a global scale once the Redwood is introduced.
Balancing Short-Term and Long-Term Goals: Tesla's strategy may balance achieving short-term financial and branding objectives with Cybertruck and laying the groundwork for long-term industry transformation with Redwood. The success of the Cybertruck could provide Tesla with the necessary resources and technological insights to support the ambitious goals of the next-gen vehicle.
Global Expansion and Market Readiness: The staggered focus allows Tesla to plan its global expansion strategically, ensuring markets are ready to introduce groundbreaking vehicles. By the time the Redwood is prepared for production, Tesla may have established a more substantial worldwide infrastructure and a more favorable regulatory and consumer environment for its adoption.
Tesla's decision to prioritize the Cybertruck over the next-gen car is a calculated risk that we can consider and debate—the company balanced market opportunities with long-term transformative potential. The success of this approach will depend on Tesla's ability to execute its ambitious plans for the Cybertruck while simultaneously advancing its revolutionary manufacturing processes. Ultimately, Tesla's strategies reflect a nuanced understanding of the challenges and opportunities in leading the global transition to sustainable transportation.
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Sentry Mode is an invaluable tool for owners - capable of keeping the vehicle safe and secure even when you’re not around. This is especially true in recent times, with the misguided and unfortunate incidents surrounding Tesla ownership, including damage to Tesla vehicles, showrooms, and Superchargers.
B-pillar Camera Recording
With the 2025 Spring Update on 2025.14, Tesla is expanding Sentry Mode’s functionality for certain vehicles with some much-needed changes. Sentry Mode and Dashcam can now record footage from the vehicle’s B-pillar cameras. These cameras are located on the side pillars of the vehicle, between the front and rear doors.
This adds two crucially needed viewpoints, making Tesla’s Sentry Mode a truly 360-degree security system. These cameras also provide the best angles for capturing license plates when parked, so they will be greatly appreciated by owners in the event of an incident.
Updated Dashcam Viewer
These vehicles are also receiving an improved Dashcam Viewer, which now displays the six camera feeds along the bottom and a new grid view that allows you to view four cameras simultaneously. It also allows users to jump back or forward in the video in 15-second increments.
However, to the disappointment of many owners, not all vehicles are receiving these updates due to the additional processing power needed.
We have confirmed that Tesla is only adding the additional camera recording on hardware 4 (HW4 / AI4) vehicles. The newer hardware presumably has the additional processing power and bandwidth needed to handle recording and saving the two additional video streams during Sentry Mode and Dashcam.
For the time being, owners of HW3 vehicles are not receiving this feature. This includes all vehicles with HW3, even those with AMD Ryzen infotainment systems. If you’re not sure whether your vehicle has HW3 or HW4, you can refer to our FSD hardware guide.
While there’s no doubt that recording two additional camera streams would be more computationally intensive, we hope that Tesla adds the improved Dashcam Viewer to HW3 vehicles in a future update.
Update: Tesla is including the new Dashcam viewer for Ryzen vehicles.
New Dashcam Viewer is Available on HW3 / Ryzen Vehicles
Tesla doesn’t include the new Dashcam Viewer as a feature in the 2025.14.3 release notes, but owners with Ryzen-based HW3 vehicles are receiving the improved Dashcam player. However, they’re only receiving the improved player, not the B-pillar camera recording. The new player is a worthy addition, so it’s great to see Tesla include this feature even if B-pillar recording isn’t possible.
The new player includes four improvements:
New grid view that lets you view four cameras at the same time
Different camera views, including the grid view are spread out across the bottom instead of at each corner
You can jump back and forward in 15-second increments
Users can jump to the next Sentry Mode video by tapping the button on the top right corner, making it easier to jump to the next event instead of having to go back to the list of events.
The existing functionality remains largely intact, including the ability to jump to a Sentry Mode event. However, the playback speed selection of 0.5x, 1x, and 2x has been removed.
Surprisingly, and most confusing for many - is the fact that the Cybertruck is also not receiving the improved Dashcam Viewer and B-pillar camera recording with this update. This struck us as odd, especially since the Cybertruck is currently the only vehicle with the improved, more efficient version of Sentry Mode.
Every Cybertruck is equipped with HW4 and AMD Ryzen infotainment units, so this clearly isn’t a hardware restriction. It’s possible the more efficient Sentry Mode is playing a role here due to the infrastructure changes. However, we expect Tesla to address this in a future update and eventually release these features for the Cybertruck as well.
Given the Cybertruck’s high visibility and its status as a frequent target for both positive and negative attention, many owners hoped that the Cybertruck would be one of the vehicles to receive this feature.
Adaptive Headlights
Tesla finally started rolling out its adaptive headlights in North America. While the new Model Y already came with the feature when it was released last month, other vehicles with matrix headlights are now receiving the feature in the Spring Update.
All vehicles with matrix headlights are receiving this feature, which includes the new and old Model 3, first-gen Model Y, and the new Model S and Model X.
If you’re not sure if your vehicle includes matrix headlights, check out our guide. What’s interesting here is that older vehicles that were retrofitted with matrix headlights due to an accident or user replacement are also receiving the adaptive headlights feature.
Legacy Model S & Model X
As with most updates, the older legacy Model S and Model X are not receiving all the features included in this update. Unfortunately, some of the features, which include the Blind Spot Camera on the instrument cluster, Save Trunk Height Based on Location and Keep Accessory Power On are limited to the new Model S and X.
Legacy S and X models will receive the Alternative Trip Plans feature, Avoid Highways (Requires Intel MCU) and the Keyboard Languages feature.
These vehicles are also receiving all the features in the Minor Updates section except for the visualization showing how far the door is opened, which is exclusive to the Cybertruck. These additions include improved music search results, contact photos in the phone app, automatic connecting to hotspots, the ability to show third-party chargers, view Supercharger amenities, and various improvements to music services.
While many users will be disappointed not to receive the B-pillar camera recording and Dashcam Viewer improvements, it’s important to remember that Tesla typically does a great job at bringing features to older vehicles, at least with the Model 3 and Model Y. If a feature isn’t added, it’s usually due to a hardware limitation.
Tesla’s Dan W Priestley attended the Advanced Clean Transportation (ACT) Expo in Anaheim, California, and provided an update on Tesla’s Semi truck program. The presentation covered several key developments on the status of Tesla’s Nevada Semi Factory, refinements to the Semi, and Tesla’s plans for charging and ramping production through 2026.
Let’s dig in and take a look at everything that was captured by the Out of Spec team at ACT Expo. The original video is embedded below if you’d like to watch it.
Semi Factory & Production Ramp
Priestley reaffirmed the timelines mentioned during Tesla’s Q4 2024 Earnings Call that Tesla will scale Semi production in 2026. To achieve this, Tesla has been actively building and expanding the Gigafactory Nevada site, specifically to support the production of the Tesla Semi. The dedicated Semi facility will have a targeted annual capacity of 50,000 Semi trucks.
Following the beginning of production, Tesla will utilize the initial trucks to integrate into its own logistics operations. This will serve as both a final real-world testing ground as well as an opportunity for Tesla to gather data internally. Tesla plans to begin subsequent customer deliveries throughout 2026 as the ramp-up continues.
Reuters also reported that Tesla is hiring over 1,000 new employees at the Semi Factory to begin the rapid ramping of the program.
Semi has already amassed 7.9 million miles with Tesla’s current testing and operational fleets, providing some real-world data and testing. Feedback for the truck has been exceptionally successful, with many drivers praising the Semi’s performance and comfort.
New Tesla Semi Features
Of course, it wouldn’t be a Tesla keynote without showing off some new things. The Semi will be available in 500-mile and 300-mile range configurations, now featuring updated mirror designs and a drop-down glass section to improve visibility and allow easier interaction with external elements—such as control panels at ports, for example.
New Electric Power Take-Off (e-PTO)
The Tesla Semi will also feature a new capability called Electric Power Take-Off, or e-PTO system. Similar to the PTO systems found on other vehicles, this will allow the Semi’s high-voltage battery to power auxiliary equipment at variable voltages. That includes being able to power things like climate-controlled reefer trailers, potentially replacing the noisy and polluting diesel generators traditionally used for this purpose.
Charging and Batteries
Out of Spec BITS/YouTube
Tesla is also working on an updated battery pack design for the final production design of the Semi. This new pack is designed to be more cost-effective to manufacture. The battery pack itself is slightly smaller than before, but the truck maintains the same level of range through efficiencies. Dan also confirmed during his keynote that the battery cells for the Semi will be sourced domestically inside the United States, helping to alleviate potential burdens due to tariffs.
On the charging front, Tesla is using MCS - the Megawatt Charging System - capable of 1.2MW - and designed specifically for Semi. The system uses the same V4 charging hardware found at Supercharger sites but focuses on that larger power output. Alongside a smaller physical footprint, Tesla will be able to configure these V4 cabinets for either dedicated Semi charging or for shared power scenarios with regular Superchargers. Tesla is also working on an integrated overnight charging product, but Tesla isn’t ready to talk about it yet.
46 Semi Charger Sites Coming
The 46 new MCS sites coming soon.
Out of Spec BITS/YouTube
Finally, Tesla has made substantial investments in a public charging network for the Semi. There are currently 46 sites in progress throughout the United States, and plans for significant expansion throughout 2026 and 2027. These sites are strategically located alongside major truck routes and within industrial areas to support long-haul and regional operations. Tesla is aiming to offer the lowest possible energy costs to operators to help incentivize adoption.
This was one of the best updates to the Tesla Semi we’ve received since its initial unveiling. It seems that the Semi will receive a big portion of Tesla’s attention in 2026, while Robotaxi and FSD Unsupervised take the stage this year.
The Tesla Semi has the potential to transform transportation even more dramatically than EVs already have, serving as a testament to Tesla’s mission to electrify the world.
![Tesla’s B-Pillar Recording Requires HW4 [Update: New Dashcam Viewer Included on HW3 / Ryzen Vehicles]](https://www.notateslaapp.com/img/containers/article_images/2025/b_pillar_sentry.jpg/e850716830972554e15b60216a6d0751/b_pillar_sentry.jpg)
![Tesla Semi Keynote: New Features, 46 Charging Sites, Upgraded Battery & More [VIDEO]](https://www.notateslaapp.com/img/containers/article_images/semi/semi-new-features.jpg/c7df4e0d32f8cb0beee080ad201e943b/semi-new-features.jpg)
