Tesla is going all out to build robotaxis – wear seat belts

Mark your calendar: Tesla CEO Elon Musk said this afternoon that his electric car maker is fully committed to developing self-driving car technology, and Tesla’s robotaxis will be unveiled on August 8.

This announcement, Musk posted on X A strange day of reports and counter-reports sent Tesla’s stock on a roller coaster ride Friday afternoon, falling 6 points on the day before recovering in after-hours trading. Reuters reports Tesla has scrapped its long-gestating plan to develop affordable electric cars for the masses. “Next Generation” Cars is widely seen as key to the survival of electric vehicle manufacturers, especially As competition intensifies in electric vehiclesAccording to the news agency, Tesla will focus on building robotaxis that will use much of the same hardware as low-cost vehicles.

But Musk logged into X to deny at least part of the Reuters report. “Reuters lied (again),” he posted” without specifying where the news organization was wrong. Hours later, he appeared to confirm part of the report, breaking the news that Tesla’s next product launch would focus on robotaxis.

This apparent turn is surprising for several reasons.

Tesla has promised but never delivered real self-driving technology for years. 2016, Tesla says All of the company’s vehicles will be equipped with the hardware needed to drive autonomously, allowing drivers to take naps and even transport cars off-road with no one inside.

in a”main plan“Musk’s post from that year outlined a (still) future scenario in which Tesla owners could share their self-driving cars with others. “When true self-driving is approved by regulators,” he wrote , customers will “be able to add your self-driving car.” Just click a button on the Tesla mobile app to add your car to your Tesla shared fleet and let it generate income while you’re at work or on vacation. ” In 2019, Musk Tell that to a roomful of investors By next year, the automaker will have “more than 1 million Tesla vehicles equipped with fully self-driving hardware.” But that didn’t happen.

Meanwhile, Tesla’s driver-assist technology, dubbed “Full Self-Driving,” is technically only “Level 2” on the five-point autonomy scale, meaning the car can only operate with driver supervision. Carry out autonomous driving. Tesla’s latest Autopilot software update is the first not labeled as a “beta” by the automaker.

Still, Tesla’s driver-assist technology has been severely criticized by the National Transportation Safety Board, the U.S. traffic safety regulator.Top US road safety watchdog launches two-year investigation Ended at the end of last year Tesla determined that Tesla’s technology could be abused by drivers because it did not force them to pay sufficient attention while driving. Tesla said it disagreed with the regulator’s analysis and rolled out a fix software update to customers over the air. Tesla insists its driver assistance features are safer than human drivers.

What’s more, other self-driving car developers have also faced serious growing pains over the past five years.A technology once touted as “just around the corner” Proving difficult and expensive More than ever planned. Now, years after most major auto and tech manufacturers have pledged to roll out self-driving software, only a handful of major players remain.After billions of dollars in dedicated research and development and more than 7 million miles driven, Google spinout Waymo only offers paid taxi services in Phoenix and San Francisco. Planned launch It will be available soon in Austin, Texas, as well as in Los Angeles and the wider San Francisco Bay Area.Another robotaxi competitor, General Motors’ Cruise, has also added its The entire service is suspended A self-driving taxi hit and injured a pedestrian, causing Clash with California regulatorsIf Tesla wants to launch robo-taxi service everywhere its cars are sold, its plans will be more ambitious than those of rivals that have been grappling with self-driving problems for years.