Model Y cars are pictured during the opening ceremony of the new Tesla Gigafactory for electric cars in Gruenheide, Germany, March 22, 2022.
Patrick Pleul | Pool | Via Reuters
Tesla CEO Elon Musk said on Tuesday that his company’s robotaxi service is “tentatively” set to launch in Austin, Texas, on June 22.
In a post on X, Musk indicated that he’s flying from Los Angeles to Austin for the kickoff, which he previously said would occur sometime in June. When a commenter asked when public rides will start, Musk said the current plan is for June 22, and that the first driverless trip from the Tesla factory to a customer’s house will take place on his birthday, June 28.
“We are being super paranoid about safety, so the date could shift,” Musk wrote.
Earlier on Tuesday, Musk shared a video on X showing that Tesla was testing driverless vehicles on the roads of Austin without a human safety supervisor behind the wheel. The eight-second clip showed the latest version of the Model Y SUV, painted black with a white “Robotaxi” graffiti-style logo painted on it, navigating an intersection and pausing to allow pedestrians to traverse a crosswalk.
Musk recently told CNBC’s David Faber that Tesla will start with a very small rollout, including about 10 to 20 of its robotaxis, with a new, “unsupervised” version of the company’s FSD or “Full Self-Driving” technology installed. The tests will involve the Model Y, not the futuristic looking CyberCab that Tesla plans to produce next year.
Musk said Tesla will “geofence” the service, limiting where the Model Y robotaxis can initially operate, and that employees will remotely monitor the fleet.
While running Tesla, Musk is also the CEO of defense contractor SpaceX and leads artificial intelligence company xAI, which has merged with his social network X (formerly Twitter.) He is also the richest person in the world, and spent nearly $300 million to propel President Donald Trump back to the White House.
Musk recently concluded a stint leading the Department of Government Efficiency, which made sweeping cuts to federal agencies, regulations and offices tasked with oversight of Tesla and his other companies.
While fans of Musk and Tesla have expressed enthusiasm for the company’s robotaxi service pilot in Austin, others with automotive safety concerns and who stand against Musk’s political ideology and activity are planning protests.
The Dawn Project, in partnership with anti-Musk activists including Tesla Takedown and Resist Austin, said in an e-mailed statement that they plan to host a demonstration on June 12 in downtown Austin to show off safety issues with Tesla’s electric vehicles and driver assistance features which are currently marketed as Autopilot and Full Self-Driving (Supervised).
Dan O’Dowd, who is CEO of both Green Hills Software and The Dawn Project, has described the latter as a tech-safety and security education business in prior interviews with CNBC. Green Hills Software makes products which are used by direct competitors of Tesla including Ford and Toyota.
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