It was bound to happen eventually; California is about to run out of license plate numbers.
That format — one number, followed by three letters, then three more numbers — has been in use since 1980, So after about 45 years, a new format is needed.
The new format will essentially be a mirror format of the previous sequence. So, instead of 1AAA000 being a possible combination, it would be 000AAA1.
Those new plates will be rolled out at some point in 2026, according to estimates.