Tesla started giving rides in model Y SUVs without a director in Austin, a decade after CEO Elon Musk started to do – and break – countless promises about the ability of his company to launch such a service.
The rollout will be the first major test of Musk’s conviction that it is possible to implement completely autonomous vehicles with only cameras and end-to-end AI approach that differs from other players in space such as Waymo.
On Sunday, countless videos confirmed on social media and sources in the city, confirmed what Musk has been teasing for months: that the journeys finally happen, on one Certainly by chance Fixed reimbursement of $ 4.20 per ride.
Tesla sent Early accessible invitations In the past week to screech out customers, who could download and use the new Robotaxi app on Sundays for hail. It is unclear how many people have received this invitation. But messages on Musk’s social media platform X show that many of them went to Tesla hardest online supporters.
The invitations, together with a new one Robotaxi information page Published on the Tesla website on 22 June, confirms that the service works every day from 6 a.m. to 12 a.m., but “can be limited or not available in the case of bad weather.” And in particular a Tesla employee will be on court for a passenger seat as a ‘safety monitor’.
The Robotaxi information page also contains instructions when downloading the app, reporting a lost item and general rules for riders. It still obscures the kind of details that Waymo-the AV company of alphabet has managed commercial robotaxis in Phoenix, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Austin-Historisch.
The robotaxi service is small to start, According to Musk. The first fleet is approximately 10 or so 2025 Model Y SUVs that work in a closely defined area of South Austin. That is in accordance with a first-hand report by Ed Niedermeyer, author of ‘Ludicrous, the unmistakable story of Tesla Motors’, who is in Austin to check the robotaxi outbreak. (Niedermeyer is co-host of the Autonocast with Techcrunch editor Kirsten Korosec.)
Neidermeyer found what a Tesla Robotaxi depot seems to be – an unobtrusive parking space strewn with trees near Oltorf Street in South Austin. The day before the launch he saw various model YS without a driver – always with an employee behind the wheel – entering and leaving the parking lot. Groups of other Tesla model Y vehicles, most with manufacturer plates, were also parked there.
This morning he saw the Tesla Model Y Robotaxis brand, this time with the employee in the front passenger seat, leaving the waiting room. He observed one of the Merkobotaxis, who had not yet picked up a rider, suddenly braking two separate times – once in the middle of an intersection. It is unclear why the vehicle behaved so much. In a video that Techcrunch watched, however, both cases took place when the Tesla passed by police vehicles that were in parking places next to the roadway.
Information gaps
In the run -up to the launch, Musk Dribs and boring shared about the Tesla Robotaxi launch in a few interviews and messages on X. Even now, almost all information about the launch of Robotaxi has been provided by the largest supporters of the company.
Tesla has even actively tried to suppress information about the robotaxi service. Tesla tried to block the public archives request of Techcrunch at the Texas Department of Transportation (TXDOT). The company has also tried to block the city of Austin from fulfilling a record request from Reuters, According to the news service.
“Tesla probeert zo transparant mogelijk te zijn, echter, zoals hieronder verder wordt uitgelegd, kan sommige van de gevraagde informatie niet worden vrijgegeven omdat het vertrouwelijke informatie, handelsgeheimen en/of zakelijke informatie is die is uitgewisseld met de TXDOT in combinatie met het leiden van bedrijfsactiviteiten met TXDOT,” Schreef Taylor White, senior adviseur op Infrastructure For Tesla, schreef in een Attorney -Arvocaten in April.
One of the more interesting roll -out strategies is the use by the company of a human ‘safety monitor’.
It is unclear what role these safety monitors will play and how much, or no control, they will have. These employees are probably not intended to intervene when the software is about to do something wrong. But they may have access to a kind of kill switch that can stop the car if it happens.
Historically, autonomous vehicle companies such as Waymo and former cruise tested their respective self -driving technology by having a human security operator behind the wheel and a second engineer in the front passenger seat. Ultimately, that can be reduced to one person who is sitting on the passenger seat before they are completely removed. This practice was traditionally done during the test phase – no commercial activities.
Tesla does not use the futuristic vehicles called Cybercabs, which were unveiled on 10 October 2024. Instead, the Tesla Model Y vehicles from 2025 are equipped with some Musk as a new one, “without supervision” version of Tesla’s full self-driven software.
Tesla will not use The camera in the cabin during journeys as standard. The company says it will only be used if a driver asks for support or in an emergency. It will use the camera after a ride has ended to “confirm the willingness of robotaxi for the next trip.”
Tesla encourages early access riders to take photos and video of their experiences, although it says that it can “suspend or terminate Robotaxi Access” if riders violate the rules, including if they “distribute content on a social media platform or a similar medium that bolds a violation of these rules or abuse of the robot taxi”. (That means that riders agree not to smoke, vapen, drink alcohol, do drugs or use the robotaxi in connection with a crime.)
Musk and other Tesla leaders praised the milestone on X, with Ashok Elluswamy, the head of the company’s self-driving team, who posted a photo of the “Robotaxi Launch Party” of An unknown location.
“Super congratulations to the @tesla_ai Software & Chip Design teams with a successful @robotaxi launch !! Culminatie of a decade of hard work,” Musk wrote.
But at least one rider on Sunday reported an experience where Tesla’s external support team had to help somehow. It is not immediately clear what happened during that ride, but the same rider later said the ride was Very flexible.
#Tesla #launches #Robotaxi #rides #Austin #great #promises #unanswered #questions #Techcrunch