Tesla will present its Robotaxi on August 8th, announced CEO Elon Musk on Friday. In his usual fashion, Musk made the announcement on X, his own social media platform. The post included the date without further details.
According to a report by Reuters on the same day, Tesla would have scrapped its $25,000 affordable electric vehicle project in favor of robotaxis, a term for shared autonomous vehicles. The report states that the Tesla Robotaxi will be built on the same platform as the scrapped $25,000 electric vehicle, sometimes referred to as Model 2, but in smaller quantities.
Tesla Robotaxi debuts on 8/8
– Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 5, 2024
In 2022, Tesla said the platform for these vehicles could cost half as much, which would have been a key factor in the affordable Model 2.
Musk has been intermittently discussing this idea of autonomous taxis generating revenue since 2019. At that time, Musk suggested that Tesla would provide the interface and support, charging a fee of 25% to 30%.
Robotaxis might use wireless inductive charging technology that Tesla is believed to be adopting, as this would eliminate the need for a human caregiver to plug them in. But perhaps more importantly, it will likely involve an entirely different hardware set for autonomous driving, like Tesla’s Full Self-Driving functionality. – The driving capability continues to draw scrutiny and won’t be a system allowing the driver to walk away from responsibility in the near term. And Musk’s assertion years ago that the Tesla Model 3 would be an appreciating asset due to its autonomous driving capabilities simply hasn’t come to fruition.
Tesla has sold 6 million electric vehicles, but robotaxis could be an entirely different challenge. Strong investments in robotaxi technology and the lack of return from bullish projections for shareholders are, for example, partly what shortened the tenure of former Ford CEO Mark Fields.
Previous non-Tesla efforts to develop an electric vehicle for Uber have gone nowhere. Could Tesla drive Uber out of business? Or is this another project, like the second-generation Roadster, that will be showcased as a concept and then pushed years beyond the original release date?
Will it ever happen?
