During Tesla’s annual shareholder meeting on Tuesday, Elon Musk shared big updates on the forthcoming semi truck model, including a more specific timeline for the prototype reveal and the vehicle’s mass production.
Musk last told us that the prototype would be unveiled in September; at the shareholder meeting, he said that Tesla is still on schedule for that goal, but got more specific: It will happen at the end of that month.
Unveiling the truck will show skeptics just how wrong they are about the vehicle, he said. “A lot of people don’t think you can do a heavy-duty, long-range truck that’s electric, but we are confident that this can be done. So we’ll be showing off a working prototype not too long from now, at the end of September.”
Musk estimates that it will be two years until the truck begins commercial production. “We will probably reach scale production on the semi in about two years,” he said. “Maybe 18 months, but probably about two years.”
Tesla's promotional image for the semi.
We already know that the semi will ride “like a sports car” and that it’s made out of parts from Tesla’s Model 3. Musk didn’t spill more details on the truck itself, but not because he lacks new information. No, he’s keeping some tricks up his sleeve, as usual.
“I really recommend showing up for the semi truck unveiling,” he hinted. “Maybe there’s a little more than we’re saying here.”
But he did promise that the truck will be tailored to the needs of heavy-duty trucking organizations, because he’s involved them in the design process. “They all love it, they just want to know how many can they buy, and how soon,” he said, to a round of applause.
If all continues to go as planned, we’ll be seeing the fruits of this process in about three months.
