On April 9, sources reported that Tesla is developing a completely new, smaller, and more affordable electric SUV. The company recently contacted suppliers to discuss the details of this plan to create a compact SUV that will be a new vehicle, not a redesign of existing Tesla Model 3 or Model Y models. According to insiders, this compact SUV will be manufactured in China, while another source indicates that Tesla also plans to expand production in the United States and Europe. The length of the vehicle is 4.28 meters (approximately 14 feet), which is significantly shorter than the best-selling Model Y SUV (approximately 15.7 feet). Previously, Musk decided to cancel the highly anticipated low-cost electric vehicle project in 2024, focusing the company's attention on robotaxis and humanoid robots. The latest attempt to develop a smaller SUV raises an important question: does this mean a strategic return to the mass market for manually operated vehicles, or will the new vehicle better align with Tesla's vision of fully autonomous transportation? According to sources and an employee, this model could potentially serve both purposes. The employee declined to confirm or deny any specific details about the model but stated that overall, Tesla's current goal is to create vehicles that are autonomous but offer the option of manual control.