Tesla has started a robotaxi pilot program in Austin, Texas to test self-driving cars after multiple years of delayed promises and rising market competition. CEO Elon Musk has been saying that the autonomous vehicles would arrive since 2019, but the launch happens now as the company faces increasing external and internal challenges.
The demo fleet launched on Sunday represents Tesla’s most concrete advancement toward Musk’s vision of one million self-driving taxis. Waymo and other rivals have already completed millions of paid rides in Los Angeles and San Diego using different technologies.
The company’s brand has suffered from political scandals and declining electric vehicle sales. The company lost more than $150 billion in market value this year after Musk had public disagreements with the Biden administration which controls important auto regulations that could affect the robotaxi launch.
The Austin pilot success of Tesla could lead to a wider deployment of autonomous vehicles during the current year. The expansion of autonomous fleets faces both regulatory hurdles and technical obstacles while public attention and political opposition continue to grow.
