United States: Tesla deploys its driverless Cybercab robotaxi in Austin

Tesla deployed driverless Cybercab vehicles on Austin's public streets Wednesday, ahead of a planned event Thursday where the company is expected to share more details about its robotaxi rollout. Video clips shared on X showed the two-seater vehicles moving through Austin streets without a driver at the wheel, according to CNBC.

CEO Elon Musk posted "A Cybercab storm" on X, while Tesla's account told followers to "try it out" in Austin and teased "no steering wheel, no pedals." As of Wednesday evening, Tesla had 45 Cybercab vehicles authorized for driverless operations in Texas out of a total of 420 vehicles registered in the state for driverless operations, according to public records on the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles website.

🇺🇸🚖 TECH | Without a steering wheel or pedals, Tesla's Cybercab arrives in Texas. Fully autonomous and electric, Elon Musk's robot taxi makes its debut in Austin. Two seats, an expected range of approximately 500 km, and no driver.

One major obstacle remains: the…

— Cerfia (@CerfiaFR)

Chargement du post X/Twitter...

According to a Tesla robotaxi tracker, approximately 200 vehicles in Tesla's US fleet carry the "unsupervised" designation, meaning they can operate without a human driver in approved geofenced areas, according to CNBC. These vehicles have recorded trips in Austin, Dallas, Houston, Miami, Orlando, and Tampa.

Tesla built the Cybercab from the ground up as a fully autonomous, two-seater vehicle with gull-wing doors and a cabin devoid of a steering wheel and pedals. Alongside this effort, Tesla conducted trials of a Cybercab variant equipped with conventional controls and a safety driver in several US cities.

Tesla began manufacturing the Cybercab at its Giga Texas factory earlier this year, with Musk warning that initial production would ramp up slowly before accelerating. He said that revenue from the vehicle was unlikely until at least 2027. The ride-hailing network launched in Austin and has since expanded to Dallas and Houston.

While the EU declares war on ChatGPT... here's just another day in Austin, USA. Cybercabs (new generation autonomous taxis) are everywhere...

BUT I CAN'T! pic.twitter.com/uCb4TRNZ3B

— VISION IA (@vision_ia)

Chargement du post X/Twitter...

Tesla also operates a ride-hailing service in the Bay Area with company employees driving recent Model Y vehicles, which run on an in-house version of its fully autonomous driving software not available to the general public. Passengers book these rides through the Tesla Robotaxi app.

Tesla stock is down about 21% this year as of Wednesday's close. For context, Waymo already offers paid robotaxi rides in 14 cities across the country and has approximately 4,000 autonomous vehicles in active service.

Federal safety regulators at the NHTSA have launched at least two active investigations to examine whether Tesla's partially automated driving systems contain safety flaws.