Autonomous Waymo Robotaxi was destroyed on the street by humans with belts
A Waymo car was recently attacked on San Francisco Street, where a man stomps its windshield and attacks the vehicle in traffic zones.
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Tesla TSLA.O CEO Elon Musk respected investors with a Robotaxi update in July: After small testing in Austin, Texas, Tesla rapidly expanded its driverless cabs and expanded the San Francisco Bay area.
Musk posted to X earlier that month that Tesla would roll out Robotaxis “in a month or two.”
The reality of Tesla’s San Francisco plans included no unmanned taxis at all. The car manufacturer had not applied for the required permit. This is the process of taking tests for years under state supervision. Instead, they planned a pre-positioned trip in human-driven vehicles, just for the invited riders. And, state officials say this would do this under permission that would normally be used for limousines and not allow on-demand passenger compartments.
News of Tesla’s Lobotakshi plan surprised and wary regulators, according to an email between California and federal officials and Tesla’s public policy staff. After media reports that Tesla would deploy its Bay Area Robotaxis in late July, state transport officials asked Tesla employees if they would resolve “public chaos.”
The staff did not respond directly. Tesla said it would not respond to media inquiries and would receive information if the customers were available. The following month, Musk posted to X, “The Tesla Robotaxi service area is already bigger than any competitor in Austin and the Bay Area.”
Musk and Tesla did not respond to requests for comment on the story. A spokesman for the California Public Utilities Commission said it needs to regulate autonomous passengers and Tesla should explain its services “appropriately and accurately” and ensure that it “provides a clear distinction” between human-driven operations in California and communications with autonomous passengers offered elsewhere.
Tesla’s unabolized Robotaxis is potentially offering stock in the company tied to performance targets as its board of directors of stock market value of over $1 trillion and an eye-opening compensation package proposed to Musk. The mask has been pledging the imminent arrival of Robotaxis for ten years each year. So far, however, EV makers have only started small Austin tests with a limited number of riders and human safety monitors in frontline seats.
In a July revenue call, Musk said that he made “emphasable advances” in “autonomous driving,” which many denied people said we wouldn’t achieve.
“We did what we said we were trying to do,” he said. “It doesn’t mean we’re always on time, but we do that, and our deniers are sitting there with eggs in their faces.”
Mask’s promises have grown as billionaire CEOs face increased pressure to provide the November shareholder vote and Robotaxis as Tesla’s electric vehicle business declines. Musk told investors in July that Robotaxis would expand at a “ultra-clear rate” that serves “half the US population” by the end of the year.
Meanwhile, similar to the Bay Area episode, Musk and Tesla use “Robotakshi” to mean less than completely unmanned taxis. In a September 13 post on my Tesla X account, the term merged with the “Fully Autonomous Driving” (FSD) driver assistance capabilities offered to customers.
“$99/month to have your own supervised Robotaxi,” read the post citing FSD subscription prices.
Matthew Wansley, a professor specializing in the Cardozo Law School of Autonomous Legicles in New York, said Musk’s Gulf claims show how Tesla wants customers and investors all the benefits of “robotaxis” and “self-driving,” but that there is no regulatory burden or legal risk to make the same claim against the government.
“They don’t want to tell regulators that they have an autonomous driving system,” he said.
Tesla launched Austin services in June, but has not opened it to the public. According to Tesla, safety monitors for passenger seats on vehicles, including highways, have begun to switch to driver seats.
Musk says Tesla is planning for recent expansions in Florida, Nevada and Arizona. Tesla secured a certificate this month to test Nevada’s self-driving cars, state officials said. State officials did not answer questions about whether Tesla filed documents to operate Robotaxis. Tesla received permission from Arizona on Friday to test autonomous vehicles with safety drivers, but is awaiting approval to test and operate without a driver. Florida does not require a specific operating permit.
Duncrowley, portfolio manager at Night View Capital, a Tesla investor, said it doesn’t matter if Tesla will hit all of Musk’s infamous optimistic timelines as long as it ultimately offers a transformative product. Still, he said investors could ultimately lose patience.
“If we were in the same place in two years,” he said, “I wouldn’t be as an ec.”
Regulators have removed the guard
Tesla’s Bay Area Robotaxi news plans an undecided regulator at the California Transportation and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), according to an email exchanged on July 25th seen by Reuters.
“Did your team meet with Tesla to discuss this weekend’s development?” I wrote NHTSA investigator Kareem Habib to a California official. State staff responded that Tesla did not have the necessary permissions.
State Assistant Transport Secretary Emily Warren emailed Tesla public policy staff and senior officials from two other state agencies that oversee autonomous vehicles, complaining of concern over public misconceptions about Tesla’s Bay Area Plan.
Tesla Policy employee Noelani Derrickson told the California Public Utilities Commission in an email response that the family and friends of Tesla employees are planning to ride in a non-motor area.
Warren forced Derrickson to see how information about the “Robotakshi” service reached the public, suggesting that it could be attributed to a “misinterpretation” of a recent Tesla statement to staff and the public. Warren asked: “Are there any plans to publicly clarify the nature of Tesla’s growing Bay Area operation to dispel the chaos?”
Tesla’s Derrickson did not respond directly, but said, “As a general policy, Tesla will not respond to press inquiries,” adding that customers will receive information about Tesla’s riding operations “when it becomes available.”
Derrickson did not respond to requests for comment.
Reported by Chris Kirkham of Los Angeles. Additional report from Abhirup Roy in San Francisco. Edited by Brian Tebnott and Matthew Lewis
