Sam Altman cancels Tesla Roadster reservation after '7.5 years of wait'

Last year, Musk said the Roadster's design was nearing completion and promised it would be "something spectacular," indicating that production was planned for 2025

OpenAI Chief Executive Officer Sam Altman on Friday appeared to take another jab at billionaire Elon Musk, saying he had cancelled his Tesla Roadster reservation after waiting for over seven years.

 

Sharing a screenshot of an email to Tesla on X, Altman wrote, "Hi, I’d like to cancel my reservation. Could you please refund me the $50K?" 

 

Altman added, "I really was excited for the car! And I understand delays. But 7.5 years has felt like a long time to wait.” 

 

The OpenAI chief said he had placed the order in 2018.

 

The post quickly went viral, reigniting attention on both Tesla’s repeated Roadster delays and the increasingly tense relationship between the two tech leaders.

 

Long wait for Tesla’s next-gen Roadster

Tesla first unveiled the second-generation Roadster in November 2017, promising record-breaking performance, including going 0-100 km/h in under 2 seconds, with a range of nearly 1,000 km (620 miles) per charge.

 

It was billed as the fastest production car ever made, but despite initial claims of a 2020 launch, the project has been delayed several times in the last eight years.

Delays and shifting priorities

During Tesla’s quarterly earnings call last year, Musk apologised to "long-suffering deposit holders" of the Roadster, admitting the car remains a lower priority compared to other projects. He described it as "the cherry on the icing of the cake", adding that Tesla’s main focus is on products with a broader impact on sustainable energy.

 

Musk said the Roadster’s design was nearing completion and promised it would be "something spectacular", indicating that production was planned for 2025. However, he did not confirm any timeline at the time.

Customers may receive Roadsters by 2027

According to Road & Track, earlier this year, Musk promised "the most epic demo ever" in late 2025, which was widely believed to feature the Roadster. On the Ride the Lightning podcast this month, Tesla Chief Designer Franz von Holzhausen confirmed that the company still aims to stage the demo within the given timeframe.

 

When asked how long customers might have to wait after the demo to receive their cars, von Holzhausen said if everything goes according to plan, the new Tesla Roadster could hit the roads by the end of 2027.

Altman-Musk tensions flare again

Altman’s decision to cancel his Roadster order comes at a time when his feud with Musk is growing. Musk, who helped start OpenAI in 2015 but left the company in 2018, has often criticised both OpenAI and Altman, saying they have moved away from the group’s original goal of keeping research open to everyone.

 

In recent months, the two have exchanged several sharp remarks. Musk has also filed a lawsuit against Altman and OpenAI. According to Bloomberg, Musk’s lawyer recently said they plan to continue the legal fight, criticising officials in California and Delaware for not stopping OpenAI’s shift into a for-profit company.