Actually happened on June 22, Tesla robot launched in Austin, Texas. However, this is the company’s tentative first step: human “Tesla Safety Monitor” is accompanying the first drivers. There are only ten cars, and rides are limited to certain Tesla users. Those early riders and influencers have been sharing their experiences on social media, mainly on X (surprise).
Most early riders seem to be Pro-Tesla users, in their profile pictures (or both) the company mentioned in its social media bio or Tesla Cap, so consider these initial reactions in this case. That being said, self-driving cars are…self-driving cars. Many live media show that the safety monitor is clamped on the handle on the right side of the passenger seat, possibly with emergency control. However, this has not been confirmed. Many passengers try to talk to their security monitors with limited success.
One user, the bearded Tesla guy called the app “basically Uber.” Others have found that summoning Tesla cars from limited rides is a challenge, watching multiple driverless Waymos pass through them while waiting. Austin is this Places for automatic ride testing: Waymo has partnered with Uber to expand its service expansion, while Amazon’s Zoox is also testing its technology in the region.
After verifying your identity through the Human Safety Monitor, you can start the journey by pressing the Start button. Tesla connects the service to the user’s existing configuration files, allowing you to import existing music playlists, which is a great option. You can also adjust temperature settings, seat position and more from the Companion app. Unlike typical Tesla, Robotaxi has buttons that require the car to pull or stop in the driveway. If you have any issues with automatic rides, you can also choose to support, although we think the human safety monitor may help faster.
When the service started, Tesla revealed a new one that included all the guidelines and rules for its robots. The company also has detailed FAQs for using the service and the registry for updates. The travel costs $4.20 for early access to the rider.
On top of a limited car pool, the parameters are strict. Rides must be driven within a geographically covered area, which does not include the airport and operates between 6 a.m. and midnight. At this point, we know to take Musk’s claim with a grain of salt, but the Tesla boss said the company plans to expand its taxi fleet to a thousand driverless cars “within a few months.” Tesla also said it will operate its Robotaxi network using an “unsupervised” version of its autonomous driving software.
