Tesla Seeks to Reassure About Its Autopilot System

Tesla is currently testing its supervised Robotaxi service powered by FSD in Austin ahead of its launch.

Tesla is accelerating the development of its on-demand transportation service based on its Full Self-Driving (FSD) technology. This service, now operational in Texas, is being tested in Austin and the San Francisco Bay Area by a select group of employees.

On its dedicated Tesla AI X account, Tesla shared a video demonstrating how its Robotaxi application works, along with some key figures. To date, the service has recorded over 1,500 trips and traveled 24,000 kilometers. The video shows passengers aboard a latest-generation Model Y, controlling their trip via a touchscreen on the back of the vehicle, while a driver supervises at the wheel.

Tesla specifies that these tests are used to “develop and validate FSD networks, the mobile app, vehicle allocation, mission control, and remote assistance operations.” This program is a key step toward refining the system ahead of its official launch planned for June.

The Robotaxi service differs from the standard FSD, which is already available to Tesla owners with subscriptions, by incorporating advanced features and specific vehicle models. For example, the two-seater “Cybercab,” which lacks a steering wheel and pedals, will be the backbone of this service. Additionally, Tesla plans to allow private owners to make their vehicles available to the program when they are not in use.

Meanwhile, Tesla is already using FSD in other applications, such as autonomous parking of recently produced Model Y vehicles at the Giga Texas factory. These developments demonstrate that the company is gradually moving closer to its vision of an ecosystem of autonomous and shared mobility, but we are still far from a new era in transportation.

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