Forget Insider Trading, Insider Buying Is Inflating Cybertruck Sales
If there's one tidbit of news that comes as the smallest bit of surprise out there in 2026, it'sTesla doing something unorthodox to better itself and getting caught red-handed. Say what you will about how much innovation and future-thinking the brand is responsible for, its ethics have been questionable as of late, to say the least.
And here we have another instance of such ethical questionability, with Tesla claiming big sales numbers for its infamous Cybertruck, only for news to break that one in five new Cybertrucks were bought and registered to none other than SpaceX.
Bloomberg recently reported that 20% of the Cybertruck's Q4 2025 registrations were to SpaceX, a number that equates to 1,279—or more than 18%—of the 7,071 Cybertrucks sold in the quarter. This translates to around $100 million in purchases and is responsible for propping up Cybertruck sales and keeping them from a 51% sales drop.
Translation: One of Elon's companies is buying vehicles from one of Elon's other companies. xAI, Neuralink, and The Boring Company also buy Cybertrucks, but the writing is still on the wall. Prior to the Cybertruck's launch in 2023, Musk predicted the automaker would be kicking 250,000 Cybertrucks out the door annually by 2025—obviously that hasn't happened.
After a long stretch of disappointing sales, the Cybertruck's fortune is coming to a head. With Musk's companies having to buy the ill-fated electric pickup to help keep his primary venture alive, Cybertruck sales might be the least of Tesla's concerns.
Become an AutoGuide insider. Get the latest from the automotive world first by subscribing to our newsletter here.
Based in Connecticut, Ross hosts The Hooniverse Podcast. He has been in the off-road world since he was a kid riding in the back of his dad’s YJ Wrangler. He works in marketing by day and in his free time contributes to Hooniverse, AutoGuide, and ATV.com, and in the past has contributed to UTV Driver, ATV Rider, and Everyday Driver. Ross drives a 2018 Lexus GX460 that is an ongoing build project featured on multiple websites and the podcast.
More by Ross Ballot
Comments
Join the conversation