Plutoisaplanet
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Tesla has either posted an ad for a safety driver or started testing Robotaxis in 17 cities in the US, half of those are located in 10 most populous cities in the US:
Jonathan Stokes has identified 17 cities and 7 states in the US where Tesla has made some progress toward beginning operation of its Robotaxis in. Currently, it operates a invite-only service in just 3 of these, located in Austin, TX, San Francisco, CA and San Jose, CA where there is a Tesla employee in the vehicle with varying control. In Texas, it can operate with a "safety monitor" who can stop the vehicle but do not sit the driver's seat unless the trip will involve state highways. In California, it doesn't yet have permission to operate without a driver, and operates as a limousine service (scheduled rides) with a "safety driver" who can intervene at will. Reuters reports that operating without a driver in California could take years. In each of these markets, Tesla has also expanded its geofence at least once.
In some cities (such as New York) Tesla does not have permits yet to begin operating as a ride hailing service. In other states such as Florida and Illinois, no permit is needed, but Tesla hasn't been found to start validating its vision system with LIDAR yet. Tesla appears to be closest to beginning new Robotaxi operations in other Texas cities near its HQ and in Arizona where both the regulatory environment and roadways are most friendly to testing autonomous vehicles.
So far, Tesla has had significant limitations on the number of vehicles and participants in its Robotaxi program. Some investors have suggested that Tesla has delayed increasing the size of its Robotaxi fleet until Q4 because the clean vehicle rebate ends in Q3. Tesla also plans to begin production of its Cybercab model in 2026, which is expected to make up the majority of the Robotaxi fleet.
Jonathan Stokes has identified 17 cities and 7 states in the US where Tesla has made some progress toward beginning operation of its Robotaxis in. Currently, it operates a invite-only service in just 3 of these, located in Austin, TX, San Francisco, CA and San Jose, CA where there is a Tesla employee in the vehicle with varying control. In Texas, it can operate with a "safety monitor" who can stop the vehicle but do not sit the driver's seat unless the trip will involve state highways. In California, it doesn't yet have permission to operate without a driver, and operates as a limousine service (scheduled rides) with a "safety driver" who can intervene at will. Reuters reports that operating without a driver in California could take years. In each of these markets, Tesla has also expanded its geofence at least once.
In some cities (such as New York) Tesla does not have permits yet to begin operating as a ride hailing service. In other states such as Florida and Illinois, no permit is needed, but Tesla hasn't been found to start validating its vision system with LIDAR yet. Tesla appears to be closest to beginning new Robotaxi operations in other Texas cities near its HQ and in Arizona where both the regulatory environment and roadways are most friendly to testing autonomous vehicles.
So far, Tesla has had significant limitations on the number of vehicles and participants in its Robotaxi program. Some investors have suggested that Tesla has delayed increasing the size of its Robotaxi fleet until Q4 because the clean vehicle rebate ends in Q3. Tesla also plans to begin production of its Cybercab model in 2026, which is expected to make up the majority of the Robotaxi fleet.
