Off to the races! Elon Musk hands first 10 Cybertruck customers the keys and watches them drive out of the lot four years after futuristic EV was first announced (but Tesla quietly doubles the starting price to $61,000)

Elon Musk handed keys to the first 10 Cybertruck owners during a live event to mark Tesla finally delivering the futuristic truck after four years of delays. 

The CEO appeared in good spirits as he watched the steel-plated electric vehicles roll onto a stage before inviting each person to sit in their new truck. 

Moments after the live stream ended, Tesla updated its website with new pricing, showing the Cybertuck has nearly doubled in price from  $39,999 to $60,990.

Musk, however, failed to mention the increase during the 25-minute event hosted at Tesla's Gigafactory in Austin, Texas.

Each of the 10 owners smiled as Musk opened the door to their new Cybertrucks and invited them to sit in the passenger seat - a Tesla employee drove off the stage.

'I hope you enjoy your car,' Musk said as he introduced an early Cybertruck buyer to his new vehicle.

The steel-plated vehicle features a six-foot-long, four-foot-wide bed that can carry up to 2,5000 pounds, 11,000 pounds towing capacity and a 17-inch ground clearance.

The starting price was not the only one to increase -  all-wheel drive is now $79,990, and the Cyberbeast is $99,990.

According to Tesla's website, the rear-wheel drive Cybertruck will be 'available' in 2025, but the all-wheel drive and the Cyberbeast are set to launch in 2024.

It was speculated that Tesla was set to raise the price due to adjustments and upgrades made since the prototype was unveiled in 2019. 

More than two million people are on the waitlist, which requires a $100 down payment to secure a truck. 

The event started with Musk making jokes with the crowd, which was a completely different mood from the day before when he told Disney CEO Bob Iger to 'go f*** yourself.'

The remark was made when Musk was asked about Iger's decision to pull advertising from X. 

But the fowl mood did not carry over into Thursday as Musk stood tall in the bed of a Cybertruck proclaiming the vehicle's durability. 

He even had Tesla design chief Franz von Holshausen recreate the 2019 test that saw shatterproof glass with a metal ball.

However, a baseball was used this time, which bounced off the 'armored glass.' 

It is unclear when the more than two million other Cybertrucks will ship, but Musk said that production should reach about 250,000 annually by 2025.

Tesla has faced 'enormous challenges in reaching volume production' with the Cybertruck because of its new technology and design, Musk said in a recent statement. 

'We dug our own grave with Cybertruck,' Musk said last month, warning that making the vehicle a significant cash flow contributor would take a year to 18 months.

Experts said that Cybertruck's new body material and unconventional, futuristic styling add complexity and costs to production and threaten to alienate traditional pickup truck buyers who focus on utility.

A few years ago, Musk had floated the idea that if people did not like the futuristic Cybertruck design, Tesla could 'build a normal looking truck.' 

Eric Noble, president of automotive consulting firm The CARLAB, said: 'The larger problem for the Cybertruck is the Cybertruck wasn't really designed for pickup truck users.

'It will have a much narrower appeal than a Ram or an F series,' he said of the popular Dodge and Ford pickups.

Telsa's Cybertruck became a sensation when revealed to the world in November 2019.

The celebrated event quickly became a nightmare for Musk after the glass on his new electric 'Cybertruck' was smashed just after he boasted about it being 'shatterproof.'

During the announcement of the truck - which looks like an armored vehicle with angular sides - Tesla design chief Franz von Holshausen tried to prove the glass was 'shatterproof' by throwing a heavy metal ball at close range.

Musk was heard muttering 'oh my f***ing God' when the glass smashed.

Since this prototype, tweaks have been made to Cybertruck to ensure it's more durable and resistant to impact from rocks and debris that may fly up as it powers through rough terrain at high speeds.

The Cybertruck's exoskeleton is now made from a new type of stainless steel that is strong enough to withstand impact from a 9mm handgun, according to Musk.

The CEO has previously blamed battery supply issues for the delay, saying that each Cybertruck would 'literally cost a million dollars a piece or more' if Tesla had started producing the futuristic vehicle in 2021.

And it was not until July of this year that the world saw an image of the first Cybertruck rolling off the assembly line in the Austin facility.