Tesla on Sunday launched its first paid robotaxi service in Austin, Texas, a milestone that brings the electric-vehicle maker into commercial autonomous ride-hailing after nearly a decade of promises from Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk.
The invitation-only pilot begins with roughly a dozen camera-only Model Y sport-utility vehicles working inside a geofenced area that includes South Congress Avenue and nearby neighbourhoods. Each trip costs a flat $4.20, and a Tesla employee sits in the front passenger seat as a safety monitor. Operations are limited to daylight hours, fair weather and relatively simple intersections.
The debut proceeds despite a request from seven Democratic members of the Texas legislature for Tesla to delay the rollout until 1 September, when a new state law will require permits and detailed emergency-response plans for autonomous-vehicle operators.
Less than 24 hours after the service went live, the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said it was seeking information from Tesla after online videos appeared to show a robotaxi driving in the wrong lane, braking sharply and exceeding speed limits. In a letter released Monday, Tesla asked the agency to treat its responses as confidential business information. A separate federal investigation into the company’s Full Self-Driving software, covering about 2.4 million vehicles, remains open.
Investors welcomed the move: Tesla shares rallied about 8–10 % on Monday to roughly $348, adding close to $100 billion in market value. Analysts said scaling the service beyond the initial fleet will hinge on regulatory approvals and proof that the system can handle more complex conditions.
11 more @robotaxi rides today with 6 different people today and more coming up! Some came all the way from New Zealand and California , all very interested in the service, and all impressed at how well it drove! I think @Tesla has got a winning formula!
🚨 NEWS: Tesla Robotaxi app update just dropped!
• You can now adjust pickup location
• Display the remaining wait time at pickup in the app and Live Activity
• Design improvements
• Bug fixes and stability improvements
$TSLA
