Elon Musk Says Tesla Robotaxi Rides Begin June 22 In Austin, Full Self-Driving To Enable Home Delivery By June 28: 'We're Being Super Paranoid'
Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced that public robotaxi rides in Austin are expected to begin on June 22, with home delivery services starting June 28. Musk emphasized a cautious approach to safety, indicating that the timeline may change. Tesla has been named an AV operator in Austin, joining competitors like Waymo and Zoox. The company has begun testing its unsupervised Full Self-Driving (FSD) technology ahead of schedule. Despite strong performance metrics, concerns about FSD capabilities remain, as noted by investor Ross Gerber.
Tesla Inc. TSLA CEO Elon Musk has stated that the EV giant expects to begin public robotaxi rides in Austin on June 22.
What Happened: "Tentatively, June 22." Musk said in a social media post on X on Tuesday in response to a query about the Austin robotaxi launch.
However, the billionaire also stated that the launch timeline could be subject to change. "We are being super paranoid about safety, so the date could shift," he said in the post before adding that he expects Teslas to drive straight to a customer's home starting June 28.
Musk had earlier shared another post touting the company's autonomous driving tech. "These are unmodified Tesla cars coming straight from the factory, meaning that every Tesla coming out of our factories is capable of unsupervised self-driving!" He said.
Why It Matters: The news comes as Tesla was officially named an AV operator in Austin, alongside the likes of Alphabet Inc.'s GOOGL GOOG Waymo and Amazon.com Inc.'s AMZN Zoox.
The billionaire had earlier shared that the company had begun testing its unsupervised FSD in Austin in the buildup to the robotaxi launch on June 12, "a month ahead of schedule."
Elsewhere, Waymo has temporarily suspended its services in Downtown LA following incidents of vandalism in the city that resulted in over 5 Waymo autonomous taxis being vandalized.
