Tesla’s robotaxi service begins in Austin: Will Musk's vision finally deliver?

Tesla’s long-awaited foray into autonomous ride-hailing began on June 22, in Austin, Texas, marking a pivotal moment in Elon Musk's ambitious vision for the future of transportation. A fleet of approximately 10 Model Y SUVs will operate in a geofenced area of the city, offering a limited, invitation-only robotaxi service to early testers.

This marks the first real-world deployment of Tesla's autonomous driving technology, but the service will be heavily restricted. Trips will be unavailable in bad weather, and passengers under 18 will be excluded. Additionally, a Tesla safety monitor will sit in the front passenger seat during the initial phase of testing.

Tesla plans to expand the service to up to 1,000 vehicles within months, with Musk teasing the eventual introduction of a fully autonomous “cybercab” that will operate without pedals or a steering wheel.

However, Tesla has made it clear that safety will remain a priority, with Musk admitting to being “super paranoid” about the rollout’s potential risks. For now, the general public will have to wait as Tesla fine-tunes the technology.

A gamble for Tesla’s future amid growing competition

The robotaxi service is seen as a critical test for both Tesla’s self-driving capabilities and the company’s future business prospects. Investors are banking on autonomous vehicles as a key driver of Tesla’s next phase of growth. Wall Street analysts predict that if the service succeeds, it could push Tesla's market capitalisation to over $2 trillion by the end of next year.

However, as Tesla enters the crowded autonomous vehicle space, it faces strong competition from Alphabet’s Waymo, which already operates a commercial robotaxi service in several US cities.

Tesla is betting that its vision of using cameras alone, rather than the more commonly employed lidar and radar systems, will be both safer and more cost-effective. But the company is also acutely aware of the risks, having seen competitors like GM’s Cruise and Uber pull back from their own self-driving ambitions following incidents involving fatalities.

Teleoperation and safety concerns

As part of its cautious approach, Tesla will rely on a teleoperation system where remote operators can take control of the robotaxis in certain situations. This method, used by other autonomous vehicle companies like Waymo, allows humans to intervene when a vehicle encounters a scenario it cannot handle on its own.

However, experts warn that teleoperation has inherent risks, particularly when it comes to cellular data connectivity, which could experience lag or drop entirely in crucial moments.

“The technology may work for a small test deployment, but once scaled up, the risks become more significant,” Philip Koopman, a Carnegie Mellon University engineering professor and autonomous-vehicle safety expert, told Reuters. Tesla’s strategy will be closely scrutinised by regulators and safety advocates, especially as the company pushes for broader deployment.

Despite these hurdles, the stakes for Tesla are high. The robotaxi service is poised to redefine the transportation landscape and could serve as a pivotal factor in Tesla’s efforts to maintain its leadership in the electric vehicle and AI-driven industries.