Tesla was pretty light on the specifications and details behind the vehicles, but there was some information that made its way out to the open in the following days. We’ve gathered up all that juicy information, so leave your Supercharger cable behind, and let’s take a look at some Cybercab battery and range details.
In addition to Tesla Vision, Optimus leverages many of our vehicles' hardware components, like batteries, cameras & computers
Tesla released this excellent animation on X recently, which looked at the similarities between Optimus - Tesla’s humanoid robot - and the Cybercab. The key note is that the Cybercab and Optimus share the same batteries, same computer, and same cameras, all based on AI5. So, assuming the video is accurate, we can roughly determine how many batteries are inside the Robotaxi, and then extrapolate the range as well. We’ve also got a second method to take estimate the vehicle’s battery size, based on the video where Tesla showed off the Cybercab’s wireless charging capabilities.
Method 1: Counting Batteries
Based on the animation, the grid of cells is 27 wide by 30 tall. If the video accurately depicts the Cybercab’s battery pack, that gives us 810 cells. We already know the 4680 battery pack in the Cybertruck has 1,344 cells, with a capacity of 123 kWh.That’s about 0.09kWh per cell, which works out to 74.685kWh in the Cybercab.
However, we feel that this number is far too large, especially given that Tesla is already intending to use the new NC05 battery format in the Cybercab. We expect the Cybercab to launch with a battery smaller than the Model 3 Standard Range (54 kWh). Therefore, we can try a different method to determine the pack size.
Method 2: Charging Math
Rafael Levy on X helped out with this calculation - it's possible to extrapolate the battery size in the Cybercab by looking at the charge rate, time remaining, and battery max charge level in Tesla’s wireless charging video. In the video, the car starts charging at 35% and is being charged at about 25 kW. The video shows the charger starting at 19 kW and going up to 25 kW of power. The video also shows that the vehicle is charged for 56 minutes. Near the end of the video the vehicle finishes charging at 80% - likely suggesting a non-LFP battery.
When you calculate it out - 25 kW for 56 minutes, you get 23.3 kWh, which is 45% of the battery pack (35% to 80%). Calculating for the full pack, it sounds like the Cybercab’s battery pack is approximately 51kWh, a much more reasonable number.
We expect the Cybercab to launch with the new NC05 cells that Tesla has been working on, which will likely be a smaller, more efficient cell than the Cybercells in today’s Cybertruck. Those smaller cells will also have less energy per cell while also taking up less space and being easier to warm or cool due to overall thermal mass.
The Cybercab doesn’t need to solve every travel case, just the most popular, which would be shorter distances. Tesla’s goal with the Cybercab is efficient and cost-effective, and a smaller battery pack definitely fits into that motive. We expect the Cybercab to include between a 40 kWh and 50 kWh battery pack.
Being autonomous, the Cybercab will have more opportunities to charge and clean itself without inconveniencing the consumer since it could go to a nearby hub after dropping off a customer.
Cybercab / Robotaxi Range
Yesterday, Tesla shared its Q3 earnings call deck, which revealed some new information about the Cybercab. In it, Tesla stated that the Cybercab will include a new powertrain and will achieve an estimated 5.5 miles per kWh. For reference, the Model 3 Long Range gets about 3.9 miles per kWh, so this is a massive improvement. Some of the improvements likely lie in the Cybercab's lighter weight and improved aerodynamics, but the new powertrain likely also brings some increased efficiency.
If the Cybercab achieves 5.5 miles per kWh, we can speculate that, depending on the battery pack size, it’ll have a range between 220 and 270 miles.
Top Gear also attended the Robotaxi event and was told by an employee that Tesla is aiming for a vehicle with 200 miles of range, which matches the lower end of our calculations above. Top Gear also stated at the time that the Cybercab would achieve 5.5 miles per kWh, which Tesla revealed yesterday.
Subscribe
Subscribe to our newsletter to stay up to date on the latest Tesla news, upcoming features and software updates.
To show off its scalability, Tesla has officially launched its first major expansion of its Robotaxi service area in Austin, Texas. The expansion comes just 22 days after the program’s initial public launch.
That’s a stunningly quick pace that sets a benchmark for how fast we’ll be expecting Tesla to roll out additional expansions as they validate and safety-check in additional area and cities. The new geofence not only adds a significant amount of new territory, but also makes Tesla’s service area in Austin approximately 4 miles larger than Waymo’s.
The expansion, which went live for users in the early access program earlier today, reshapes the map into… what we can call an upside-down T. It helps connect more parts of the city, and increases the service area by more than double.
So far, the initial launch has been operating without any significant issues, which means Tesla is ready and willing to continue expanding the program.
Rapid Scaling
While the larger map is a clear win for early-access users and especially those who live in Austin, the most significant aspect here is just how fast Tesla is going. Achieving a major expansion in just over three weeks since its initial launch is a testament to Tesla’s generalized autonomy approach with vision only.
Unlike methods that require intensive, street-by-street HD mapping that can take months or even years just to expand to a few new streets, Tesla’s strategy is built for this type of speed.
This is Tesla’s key advantage - it can leverage its massive fleet and AI to build a generalized, easily-applicable understanding of the world. Expanding to a new area becomes less about building a brand-new, high-definition map of every street light and obstacle, but instead a targeted safety validation process.
Tesla can deploy a fleet of validation vehicles to intensely focus on one zone, allowing the neural nets to learn the quirks of that area’s intersections and traffic flows. Once a high level of safety and reliability is demonstrated, Tesla can simply just redraw the geofence.
Geofence Size
Tesla went from approximately 19.7 sq mi (51 sq km) to 42.07 sq mi (109 sq km)in just 22 days, following the initial launch and safety validation. Within a few short days of launch, we began seeing the first Tesla engineering validation vehicles, hitting Austin’s downtown core, preparing for the next phase.
The larger footprint means more utility for riders, and that’s big, especially since the new service area is approximately four square miles larger than Waymo’s established operational zone in the city.
Highways and Fleet Size
The new territory enables longer and more practical trips, with the longest trip at tip-to-tip taking about 42 minutes from the southern edge of the old geofence to the northern edge of the new geofence. For now, Tesla has limited its fleet to operating exclusively on surface streets and does not use highways to complete its routes.
We also don’t know if Tesla has increased the vehicle fleet size quite yet - but if they’re intending to maintain or reduce wait times for even the early-access riders, the fleet size will easily need to be doubled to keep up with the new area.
This video clip shows the @robotaxi follows the Interstate (I-35) but does not take the highest.
Perhaps the most telling bit about how fast Tesla is expanding is that they’re already laying the groundwork for the next expansion. Validation vehicles have been spotted operating in Kyle, Texas, approximately 20 miles south of the geofence’s southern border.
Robotaxi Validation vehicles operating in Kyle, Texas.
Financial_Weight_989 on Reddit
This means that while one expansion is being rolled out to the public, Tesla is already having its engineering and validation teams work on the next expansion. That relentless pace means that if this keeps up, Tesla will likely have a good portion of the Austin metropolitan area - the zone they’ve applied for their Autonomy license for - serviceable by the end of 2025.
The pilot? A success. The first expansion? Done. The second expansion? Already in progress. Robotaxi is going to go places, and the next question won't be about whether the network is going to grow. Instead, the new questions are: How fast, and where next?
One of the most welcome features of the recently refreshed 2026 Model S and Model X is the addition of a front bumper camera. Now, thanks to some clever work by the Tesla community, it has been confirmed that this highly requested feature can be retrofitted onto older HW4-equipped (AI4) Model S and Model X vehicles.
The discovery and first installation were performed by Yaro on a Model X, and Tesla hacker Green helped provide some additional insight on the software side.
Unused Port and a Software Switch
The foundation for this retrofit has been in place for a long time, laid by Tesla itself. All HW4-equipped Model S and Model X vehicles, even those built before the recent refresh, have an empty, unused camera connector slot on the FSD computer, seemingly waiting for this exact purpose.
While the physical port is there, getting the car to recognize the camera requires a software change. According to Green, a simple configuration flag change is all that is needed to enable the front camera view on the vehicle’s main display once the hardware is connected and ready.
The Hardware: Parts & Costs
Yaro, who performed the installation on a Model X, provided a detailed breakdown of the parts and approximate costs involved.
Front Camera - $200 USD
Bumper Grill (with camera cutout) - $80 USD
Bumper Harness - $130 USD
Washer Pump - $15 USD
Washer Hoses - $30 USD
The total cost for the Model X hardware comes to around $455 USD, which isn’t too expensive if you were to DIY it. Tesla’s Electronic Parts Catalog has some of these parts available for order, and some can be ordered via your local Service Center. Yaro did note that he had to jerry-rig the camera connector cable, having salvaged the cable from a different camera harness.
The Model S vs Model X
This is where the project varies significantly. For the Model X, the retrofit is relatively simple. Because the main bumper shape is the same, only the lower bumper grill needs to be swapped for the version with the camera opening, along with installing the camera itself and the washer hardware.
For the Model S, the process is a bit more complex and expensive. Due to the different shape of the pre-refresh bumper, the entire front fascia assembly must be replaced to accommodate the camera. This makes the project far more expensive and laborious.
DIY or Official Retrofit?
The official front bumper camera on the Model X
Not a Tesla App
Right now, this is only a DIY retrofit. Tesla hasn’t indicated that they intend to offer this as an official retrofit for older vehicles at this time, but given the fact that it isn’t too complex, we expect that there is a possibility that they may do so in the near future.
All in all, this is about 3-5 hours of labor for the Model X, and approximately 5-7 hours of labor for the Model S, based on the official Tesla Service Manuals, using the front fascia reinstall process as a guide.
That means if Tesla does offer this as a retrofit service, it will likely cost between $800 and $1,200 USD when factoring in Tesla’s labor rates, but the total cost will vary regionally.
For those who own an AI4 Model S or Model X, it could be possible to request service for this installation, but as far as we’re aware, there is no official service notice for this retrofit at this time.
What About the Model 3?
For owners of the refreshed Highland Model 3, the only vehicle now left without a front bumper camera, the possibility of a retrofit is still uncertain. It has been noted by Green that some, but not all Model 3s built in late 2024 have an empty camera port on the FSD computer. This inconsistency means that while a retrofit may be possible for a subset of Model 3s, it isn’t a guaranteed upgrade path like it is for the Model S or Model X.
![Tesla Software Update 2025.26: Grok, Light Sync, Audio Presets and More [VIDEO]](https://www.notateslaapp.com/img/containers/article_images/tesla-update/light-sync-update.jpeg/e84ab2f1fe12f493a75927db105a9586/light-sync-update.jpg)
