Robotaxis are closer to becoming a reality, after Tesla launched a full self-driving (FSD) supervised ride-hailing service in Austin, Texas, and the San Francisco Bay Area “for an early set of employees.”
The announcement was made on Wednesday on X.
“We’ve accomplished over 1.5k trips & 15k miles of driving,” the social media post said. “This service helps us develop & validate FSD networks, the mobile app, vehicle allocation, mission control & distant assistance operations.”
The U.S. electric vehicle maker is committed to launching the service in Austin by June, Reuters reports.
CEO Elon Musk promised during Tesla’s latest earnings call that autonomous vehicles will “move the financial needle in a big way” by late next yr.
On Tuesday’s call, Musk said Tesla will first use existing Model Y vehicles outfitted with self-driving software. The automaker can be developing a dedicated autonomous model, dubbed the Cybercab, with production starting next yr.
Musk said he expects autonomous driving technology will begin to “affect the underside line of the corporate, and begin to be fundamental” by the second half of 2026.
“I predict that there might be thousands and thousands of Teslas operating fully autonomously within the second half of next yr,” he said.
As its core automotive business struggles, with vehicle sales down 13% in the primary quarter, expectations are high for Tesla to prove it will probably overcome the technological hurdles of autonomous driving and reveal a sound business model for driverless automobile services.
Most bullish investors and analysts tie the majority of Tesla’s stock value to its plans for a large robotaxi and autonomous-driving subscription business.
Investors and analysts in the subsequent few months might be on the lookout for concrete signs that Tesla can scale the robotaxi business and navigate technical challenges.
Blake Anderson, associate portfolio manager at Carson Group, a Tesla investor, said in the approaching months he desires to see specifics similar to how much Tesla will charge per mile in Austin, and whether that may very well be profitable. He also wants more details on Tesla’s safety record and the way continuously its vehicles in Austin must disengage from autonomous driving mode.
“Safety is the thing they control probably the most, so I need proof that what they do control is ironed out,” Anderson said, in keeping with Reuters. “Then I even have a much greater line of sight into the national rollout.”
Others are less convinced by Musk’s prediction that robotaxis will play a fabric role in earnings by the second half of next yr. Musk on Tuesday’s call said the Austin robotaxi launch would start with 10 or 20 Model Y vehicles, and that Tesla would “scale it up rapidly after that,” expanding to other U.S. markets later within the yr.
Robotaxis are closer to becoming a reality, after Tesla launched a full self-driving (FSD) supervised ride-hailing service in Austin, Texas, and the San Francisco Bay Area “for an early set of employees.”
The announcement was made on Wednesday on X.
“We’ve accomplished over 1.5k trips & 15k miles of driving,” the social media post said. “This service helps us develop & validate FSD networks, the mobile app, vehicle allocation, mission control & distant assistance operations.”
The U.S. electric vehicle maker is committed to launching the service in Austin by June, Reuters reports.
CEO Elon Musk promised during Tesla’s latest earnings call that autonomous vehicles will “move the financial needle in a big way” by late next yr.
On Tuesday’s call, Musk said Tesla will first use existing Model Y vehicles outfitted with self-driving software. The automaker can be developing a dedicated autonomous model, dubbed the Cybercab, with production starting next yr.
Musk said he expects autonomous driving technology will begin to “affect the underside line of the corporate, and begin to be fundamental” by the second half of 2026.
“I predict that there might be thousands and thousands of Teslas operating fully autonomously within the second half of next yr,” he said.
As its core automotive business struggles, with vehicle sales down 13% in the primary quarter, expectations are high for Tesla to prove it will probably overcome the technological hurdles of autonomous driving and reveal a sound business model for driverless automobile services.
Most bullish investors and analysts tie the majority of Tesla’s stock value to its plans for a large robotaxi and autonomous-driving subscription business.
Investors and analysts in the subsequent few months might be on the lookout for concrete signs that Tesla can scale the robotaxi business and navigate technical challenges.
Blake Anderson, associate portfolio manager at Carson Group, a Tesla investor, said in the approaching months he desires to see specifics similar to how much Tesla will charge per mile in Austin, and whether that may very well be profitable. He also wants more details on Tesla’s safety record and the way continuously its vehicles in Austin must disengage from autonomous driving mode.
“Safety is the thing they control probably the most, so I need proof that what they do control is ironed out,” Anderson said, in keeping with Reuters. “Then I even have a much greater line of sight into the national rollout.”
Others are less convinced by Musk’s prediction that robotaxis will play a fabric role in earnings by the second half of next yr. Musk on Tuesday’s call said the Austin robotaxi launch would start with 10 or 20 Model Y vehicles, and that Tesla would “scale it up rapidly after that,” expanding to other U.S. markets later within the yr.
