Tesla Inc CEO Elon Musk on Thursday revealed a long-awaited robotaxi, with two gull-wing doors and no steering wheel or pedals, followed by the surprise announcement of a “robovan,” betting on a shift in focus from low-priced, mass-market cars to robotic vehicles.
At a glitzy unveiling, Musk arrived on stage in a “Cybercab” that he said would be produced from 2026 — eventually at high volume — and priced under US$30,000. He then introduced the robovan, which can carry up to 20 people, but offered few additional details.
Musk, who has a record of missing projections and has previously said that he tends to be optimistic in estimating timeframes, did not say how quickly Tesla could ramp up robotaxi production, clear inevitable regulatory hurdles or implement a business plan to leapfrog robotaxi rivals, such as Alphabet’s Waymo.
Photo:Reuters
Analysts and industry experts said establishing robotaxis could take years, particularly due to ensuring safety and reliability. They pointed to accidents as well as the technology’s difficulty in responding to scenarios such as inclement weather, complex intersections and pedestrian behavior.
However, Musk, wearing a leather jacket and addressing crowds at the Warner Bros studio near Los Angeles, said autonomous cars could be 10 times safer than human drivers and stay on the road for five to 10 times longer.
“The autonomous future is here,” Musk said. “With autonomy, you get your time back.”
Musk previously said he planned to operate a fleet of self-driving Tesla taxis that passengers could hail through an app. Individual Tesla owners would also be able to make money on the app by listing their vehicles as robotaxis, he had said.
However, he made no mention of the app at Thursday’s event.
The event — titled “We, Robot” in an apparent nod to the “I, Robot” science-fiction short stories by US writer Isaac Asimov — echoed Musk’s comment that Tesla “should be thought of as an AI robotics company” rather than an automaker.
The presentation, months in the making, lasted for less than half an hour and was watched by about four million people on Musk’s X social media platform alone.
“I’m a shareholder and pretty disappointed. I think the market wanted more definitive time lines,” Triple D Trading equity trader Dennis Dick said.
“I don’t think he said much about anything,” he added.
Running the Cybercab would cost US$0.20 cents per mile (1.6km) over time and charging would be inductive, requiring no plugs, Musk said. Operating the robovans would be even cheaper — at US$0.05 per mile.
The vehicles would rely on AI and cameras rather than the hardware common among robotaxi rivals, he said, such as lidar — an approach experts have flagged as challenging from a technical as well as a regulatory standpoint.
Beyond vehicles, Musk touted “a lot of progress” made with its humanoid robot “Optimus” that could eventually be priced at US$20,000 to US$30,000 and which could perform many daily tasks.
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