Tesla will introduce a paid autonomous ride-hailing service in Austin, Elon Musk mentioned throughout an earnings name discussing the automaker’s monetary outcomes for 2024. As TechCrunch reviews, he mentioned the corporate will use automobiles with no human driver behind the wheel and with the unsupervised model of its Full Self-Driving software program, which Tesla has but to launch. The service will launch with the corporate’s inside fleet in Austin this June earlier than increasing to different places within the US. After which subsequent 12 months, Tesla house owners will be capable of add their automobiles to the fleet each time they need, form of like how individuals can checklist and unlist their properties on Airbnb, Musk mentioned. He defined that the automaker desires to iron out any kinks first, resembling ensuring billing works properly and that the robotaxis will cease on the proper spot after they’re ordered.
Because the plan is to permit automobile house owners so as to add their Teslas to the corporate’s robotaxi fleet, the automaker can also be planning to launch its unsupervised FSD software program in California and different areas within the US earlier than the 12 months ends. Understanding Musk’s tendency to overpromise on timelines, although we would take that announcement with a (big) grain of salt.
Musk has been speaking about robotaxis for some time now and mentioned again in 2019 that Tesla will “have over 1,000,000 robotaxis on the street” inside a 12 months. When he launched the Cybercab in 2024, he mentioned he envisions a future whereby individuals personal a number of robotaxis that they’ll then earn cash from by a ridesharing community. It is value noting that Waymo began providing absolutely autonomous rides to pick customers in Austin in late 2024 and can be launching the service absolutely within the metropolis someday this 12 months.