SpaceX and other Elon Musk companies are propping up Cybertruck sales

At a glance:

• SpaceX registered 1,279 Cybertrucks, representing over 18% of the 7,071 units logged in the U.S. during the Dec‑2024 quarter
• Musk‑linked firms (SpaceX, xAI, Neuralink, The Boring Company) accounted for nearly one‑fifth of all Cybertruck registrations in that period
• Cybertruck deliveries fell 48% in 2025, dropping to 20,237 units, while Tesla’s total vehicle deliveries slipped 9% YoY

What the registration data reveals

The S&P Global Mobility dataset, cited by Bloomberg, shows that 1,279 Cybertrucks were registered to SpaceX alone between October and December 2024. That figure translates to roughly 18 % of the total 7,071 Cybertruck registrations in the United States for the three‑month window. When the other Musk‑affiliated entities—xAI, Neuralink and The Boring Company—are added, the combined tally reaches 1,339 vehicles, or just under 20 % of all new Cybertruck plates issued.

How the numbers compare to Tesla’s own sales

Tesla’s internal delivery reports tell a different story. In 2025 the company shipped only 20,237 Cybertrucks, a 48 % plunge from the previous year’s volumes. Overall vehicle deliveries for the year fell 9 % to 1,636,129 units. By contrast, the combined purchases by Musk’s other companies represent roughly 6.5 % of the total Cybertruck fleet sold that year, suggesting the external demand is acting as a modest cushion rather than a growth engine.

The financial scale of the corporate purchases

The base price of a Cybertruck starts at $69,990. Multiplying that by the 1,339 units bought by SpaceX, xAI, Neuralink and The Boring Company yields a minimum spend of about $93.7 million. Bloomberg notes that the purchases have continued into 2025, implying the total outlay could easily exceed $100 million. While Tesla has not disclosed whether the companies received any volume discounts, the headline‑level cost underscores how significant internal corporate demand has become for a model that is otherwise struggling in the market.

Political headwinds and consumer perception

Multiple academic studies have linked Elon Musk’s political activities to a measurable dip in Tesla’s brand appeal. A joint Yale‑NBER study estimates that Musk’s public endorsement of Donald Trump and his involvement with the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) cost Tesla at least one million vehicle sales between October 2022 and April 2025. A separate Nature paper published in July found that Musk’s political stance alienated liberal consumers, dampening their willingness to purchase not only Tesla cars but EVs more broadly. The research also notes that the expected surge among conservative buyers never materialised.

Industry‑wide EV slowdown and competitive pressure

The broader U.S. EV market is contracting as federal subsidies expire, prompting many automakers to recalibrate their strategies. Tesla’s market share erosion is evident in BYD’s recent milestone: the Chinese manufacturer overtook Tesla as the world’s largest EV seller in 2024, delivering 2.26 million vehicles in 2025—a 28 % increase year‑over‑year. This shift reflects both the subsidy pull‑back and growing consumer appetite for alternatives that are perceived as less politically charged.

What Tesla may do next

Analysts at Electrek reported in December that SpaceX could purchase as many as 2,000 Cybertrucks, a figure that would dwarf the current corporate tally. Earlier, the truck’s lead engineer posted on X that SpaceX was replacing its gas‑powered support fleet with Cybertrucks at the Starbase launch site, sharing photos of the electric pickups in operation. If SpaceX follows through on a larger order, the internal demand could temporarily mask the broader sales decline, but it will not address the underlying consumer sentiment challenges that are driving the slowdown.

Outlook for the Cybertruck and Tesla’s broader portfolio

While Musk’s satellite companies provide a short‑term lifeline, the long‑term outlook hinges on Tesla’s ability to re‑engage a fragmented consumer base and to navigate a post‑subsidy U.S. market. The company’s 2025 target of 250,000 Cybertrucks per year—once a bold forecast—now appears out of reach. Future growth will likely depend on new model iterations, pricing adjustments, and perhaps a strategic pivot away from politically polarising messaging.