Tesla’s Robotaxi Debut Faces Roadblocks
The Tesla Robotaxi launch in Austin, Texas, is facing federal scrutin after several concerning incidents were caught on video and shared widely on social media. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) confirmed on Monday that it has contacted Tesla following footage of the company’s autonomous vehicles behaving unpredictably on public roads. The robotaxis, part of a limited pilot program launched over the weekend, were seen driving the wrong way and braking abruptly in active traffic, sparking safety concerns among the public and authorities alike.
The Tesla Robotaxi service using modified Model Y SUVs equipped with its latest Full Self-Driving (FSD) Unsupervised software. The rides are currently invitation-only and available only in good weather and daylight conditions, with a human safety supervisor seated in the front passenger seat. Despite the limited scale, fewer than two dozen vehicles, the rollout has caught national attention, particularly due to the erratic behavior documented online.
Federal Regulator Responds Amid Ongoing Investigations
NHTSA stated it is actively engaging with Tesla to collect more details about the reported incidents. In an email, the agency emphasized that it does not pre-approve vehicle technologies but relies on automakers to self-certify compliance with federal safety standards. If safety defects are suspected, NHTSA conducts its investigations and may take necessary actions to ensure road safety. The agency is already investigating Tesla’s FSD Beta technology following previous crashes that resulted in injuries and fatalities.
Tesla has not issued a public comment yet. Requests for responses from senior Tesla figures, including Vice President of Vehicle Engineering Lars Moravy and regulatory counsel Casey Blaine, have gone unanswered. This silence adds to the uncertainty surrounding the performance and readiness of Tesla’s autonomous driving systems.
A Decade of Driverless Promises Falls Short
The latest developments once again highlight the gap between Elon Musk’s long-standing promises and Tesla’s actual progress in autonomous driving. Musk has repeatedly projected that Tesla would achieve full autonomy within a few years, dating back to 2015. He claimed in 2016 that a Tesla vehicle would complete a cross-country trip without any human input by 2017.In 2019, Musk promised investors that 1 million Tesla Robotaxi-ready vehicles would be on the road by 2020, earning income for their owners. None of these milestones have been achieved.
Despite the rocky start, Tesla shares surged by 8% on Monday following the Austin rollout. However, critics point out that the pilot program mainly involves Tesla supporters and promoters, raising concerns about transparency and broader public readiness. Meanwhile, competitors are making significant headway. Alphabet-owned Waymo announced it has completed over 10 million paid trips, Tesla Robotaxi is gaining attention amid federal scrutiny, and Chinese tech companies like Baidu’s Apollo Go, WeRide, and Pony.ai are running commercial robotaxi operations with greater consistency.
Tesla’s Austin experiment may mark a step toward its autonomous goals, but it also underscores the real-world challenges that remain before full autonomy becomes a safe and widespread reality.
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