It looks like Elon wants to be a permanent member of the Late-Very-Late party gang. Not even a single Tesla vehicle has been launched on the promised time so far. Elon Musk once again announced that the company will reveal its purpose-built Robotaxi in October, about two months later than planned.
Why? Well, we don’t have enough juice on that but in Elon’s words, he needs to make some important changes before the big reveal. Here’s everything that we know so far!
Table of Contents
Tesla Cybercab Robotaxi to Debut October 10
Musk said during the second-quarter earnings call on Tuesday that he wanted to make some “important changes” to improve the vehicle.
The reveal was initially scheduled earlier, but Musk delayed it to make some last-minute design changes. His announcement about the robotaxi came with an interesting twist as he plans to now launch Robotaxi on October 10.
He mentioned that the delay would let Tesla “show off a couple of other things,” without giving details. Also, this Robotaxi might be called the Tesla Cybercab.
Earlier this month, Bloomberg reported the two-month delay, which Musk confirmed in a social media post. Originally, Musk planned to unveil the self-driving vehicle design on the Dragon Year’s August 8, a Chinese favorite. We covered the news earlier in May when the launch was confirmed for 08/08.
Read here:
Tesla’s Robotaxi Turns Reality with an August 8th Reveal in China Amidst Government-Supported Trials
What Might Be Causing The Delay?
With Zoox and Waymo already ahead in the driverless vehicle game, Tesla seems to be struggling to get the Robotaxi running. While the prospects Elon has been promising for a long are exciting, the problems for Tesla don’t end with the delay.
There are still challenges to address before robotaxis become a common sight on our roads:
Regulatory Hurdles
Autonomous vehicles require extensive regulatory approval and compliance with safety standards. Tesla mentioned that the deployment of Robotaxi largely depends on technological advancement and regulatory approval.
Musk is confident that regulatory approval won’t be a problem, but getting through the different rules and safety standards in various regions is still a major challenge for launching the robotaxi service.
Public Acceptance
Building trust in autonomous technology is of course important but a tough call. People need to feel confident in the safety and reliability of robotaxis or any other autonomous vehicle for that matter.
The fact that tech can be safer than human decision-making is still frowned upon. Moreover, there have been many mishaps already with FSD even with a driver present in the vehicle. Trusting a driverless vehicle will take some time getting used to.
On Tuesday’s call, Musk said in response to an investor question that Tesla as of now cannot start offering driverless rides to customers until FSD can be used without supervision.
Infrastructure
Cities will need to adapt their infrastructure to support autonomous vehicles, including dedicated lanes, charging stations, and smart traffic management systems.
Where’s Tesla Headed?
Elon Musk seems unsure about Tesla’s future. The company is great at making electric cars, but Musk often talks more about new projects like AI and robots. The biggest new idea is the Robotaxi, which he thinks will change Tesla by turning cars into self-driving taxis using AI. This could reduce accidents and cut costs, potentially making a lot of money in the coming times.
However, people are getting impatient.
In the latest earnings report, the future of self-driving cars looks uncertain. Musk’s plan to take $5 billion from Tesla to invest in his other company, xAI, caused Tesla’s stock to drop, losing $90 billion overnight.
Analysts say Tesla needs to show results soon for its robots and Robotaxi to regain investor trust. After a brief rise, Tesla’s stock is now lower than at the start of the year, showing the need for quick progress.
Bottomline
Elon Musk needs to show the actual progress on Robotaxi before making excuses to delay the launch. Why? Because he’s already made too many launch promises saying they have been working on it for years and people are now losing interest.
The two-month delay to make the last-minute changes could work for Tesla. While this delay frustrates investors, Musk remains confident in Tesla’s future, despite ongoing challenges. What do you think is going to happen with the Robotaxi launch?
