Musk teases Tesla Roadster demo by year-end. He's been hyping a new one since 2017

Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, has reignited excitement around the long-awaited next-generation Roadster, originally teased eight years ago. The revamped version of the iconic sports car, which builds on Tesla's first electric vehicle from 2008, has yet to enter production. In a recent podcast conversation with Joe Rogan, Musk was posed a question regarding the delayed vehicle. While he provided some insight on timing, he refrained from divulging specific technical or design updates. "I can't do the unveil before the unveil," Musk quipped, maintaining an air of mystery about the upcoming model. He expressed hope that Tesla would showcase the new Roadster to enthusiasts and stakeholders "hopefully before the end of the year." Musk's comments follow a post from Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI and a former close associate of Musk. In a recent message on social media platform X, Altman revealed his attempts to cancel his Roadster reservation from 2018 and retrieve his deposit, only to encounter a bounced email response. "I really was excited for the car!" he lamented. "And I understand delays. But 7.5 years has felt like a long time to wait." The situation is further complicated by the ongoing legal tensions between Musk and Altman, who now leads a competing AI startup, xAI. Industry expert Patrick George, editor-in-chief at InsideEVs, remarked that the Roadster has been absent from the market for years, suggesting that Musk's recent comments might be a reaction to Altman's public frustration. Earlier this year, tech reviewer Marques Brownlee shared his own struggles with canceling his Roadster reservation during an interview, highlighting the challenges faced by potential buyers. This high-end, low-volume model is designed to compete with other luxury vehicles, including BYD's YangWang U9 Xtreme, which recently earned the title of the world's fastest production car. Additionally, Musk is gearing up for a crucial shareholder vote next week, seeking approval for a substantial pay package that could result in nearly $1 trillion in Tesla stock, increasing his ownership stake to approximately 25% contingent upon the company achieving specific market goals and growth targets.