- Elon Musk announced that Tesla plans to launch its driverless robotaxi service in Austin on June 22, using a fully autonomous Model Y. The first customer trip is slated for June 28, Musk's birthday.
- The service will initially be geofenced to certain areas in Austin, with remote monitoring by Tesla employees to ensure safety and performance. Musk emphasized caution, saying the launch date could shift.
- Experts said the main challenge isn’t technology but economics, as Tesla must compete with low-cost human drivers from platforms like Uber and Lyft, who absorb their own vehicle costs.
- General Motors and Ford have exited the autonomous vehicle race, while Alphabet's Waymo continues to expand despite steep financial losses, recently doubling paid rides to 10 million.
- Despite economic concerns and rival retreats, Musk is moving forward with his robotaxi vision, betting on Tesla's Full Self-Driving technology to deliver what others have failed to achieve.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk has announced that the company is "tentatively" planning to launch its long-anticipated robotaxi service in Austin, Texas, on June 22.
In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, on Tuesday, June 10, Musk revealed that he would be flying from Los Angeles to Austin for the kickoff event. The service, which will use a driverless version of Tesla's Model Y SUV, marks a major milestone for the electric vehicle maker's push into autonomous ride-hailing.
Musk said the first driverless trip, from Tesla's Austin Gigafactory to a customer's home, is expected to take place on his birthday, June 28.
"Tentatively, June 22," he posted on X. "We are being super paranoid about safety, so the date could shift. First Tesla that drives itself from factory end of line all the way to a customer house is June 28."
Earlier on Tuesday, Musk shared an eight-second video clip showing a black Model Y adorned with a white, graffiti-style "Robotaxi" logo navigating an Austin intersection. The vehicle, equipped with Tesla's latest Full Self-Driving (FSD) software, came to a complete stop at a crosswalk, yielding to pedestrians, all without a human driver or safety supervisor onboard.
The initial rollout will be geofenced, restricting where the robotaxis can operate within Austin. Tesla employees will remotely monitor the fleet to ensure safety and performance during the pilot phase. (Related: German police officers chase Tesla on autopilot, driver literally asleep.)
Musk still bets on robotaxis as rivals retreat
While Musk has hyped robotaxis as the next major leap for Tesla, automakers like General Motors and Ford have already stepped away from the costly pursuit. GM recently scrapped its self-driving initiative after spending billions, citing the "considerable" resources needed and an "increasingly competitive robotaxi market." Ford has exited the autonomous vehicle (AV) race entirely.
Still, competition for Tesla's vision may not come from other manufacturers, but from the gig economy drivers who already dominate the ride-hailing landscape.
"The challenge is less technological and more economic," said Bryant Walker Smith, an affiliated scholar at the Center for Internet and Society at Stanford Law School, an expert in autonomous vehicles. "If a company that needs to pay engineers and mechanic and remote assistance has to compete with Uber drivers who might be making less than minimum wage to maintain their own older vehicle, that's kind of hard to do."
For instance, Google parent Alphabet's Waymo is one of the few AV companies still pushing ahead, but it is not without losses. While Alphabet doesn't break out specific Waymo financials, the division that includes it posted a $4.1 billion loss last year, despite $5.6 billion in funding. That figure may be manageable for Alphabet, which recorded $100 billion in net income, but it starkly contrasts with Tesla's more modest $7 billion in profit last year, a figure down 53 percent from 2023.
Despite the losses, Waymo is expanding. Since launching paid services in 2020, ridership has surged. The company recently reported more than 10 million paid rides, doubling from five million at the end of last year. Its 1,500-vehicle fleet is currently operating in Phoenix, San Francisco and Los Angeles. Uber, meanwhile, is partnering with Waymo in Austin and plans to expand to Atlanta next year.
But Musk has shrugged off all these warnings and continues with his plan.
Learn more about self-driving cars at RoboCars.news.
Watch this "Inside Edition" report about a Tesla on autopilot hitting a sheriff's car in North Carolina.
This video is from the TKWK T.V channel on Brighteon.com.
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