It was supposed to be a novel structural design with an affordable price tag. Instead it's a unibody with heavier than needed panels slapped on it. Might as well be a Ford Maverick for its value as a pickup truck.
It's an Edsel.
How many of you all have ever seen or even heard of Edsel? That's CyberTruck in half a century. It's not going to be remembered by most, much less collected. Those who do remember it will scoff like we do Edsels and would have done for that coked out* car maker, John DeLorean's monstrosity, had it not got a starring role in one of the greatest movies of all time and the franchise that followed.
* To be fair, we were nearly all coked out in 1975 :D
> It was supposed to be a novel structural design with an affordable price tag
Who buys a car for its "novel structural design"?
Most buy a car for some combination of transportation/utility, comfort/performance, and social signaling, in varying proportions depending on their needs/circumstances, desires, and personality.
The CT's appeal seems to lean heavily on the last 2 of those characteristics, since as you point out, a common pickup truck would be more functional and far cheaper.
Showing off has been a well understood reason for buying luxury cars from the very beginning of automobiles (when they were all luxury).
The CT just happens to be on the extremely ugly (or unconventional looking) end of the spectrum.