In Austin, Texas, where the regulatory system is among the most flexible in the United States, a new ride-booking service, similar to Uber's, has opened. It was one of the most anticipated: Tesla's Robotaxi service has long been talked about, and now it's available in a very early version, where the Model Ys (and not the Cybercabs) launched without drivers are accompanied by maximum supervision, with a Tesla employee sitting in the front passenger seat, in order to cut the circuit in case of an emergency.
Elon Musk, the boss of the American manufacturer, had promised the arrival of the service this Sunday, June 22, after the first Model Y in Robotaxi mode was spotted ten days earlier in the Texan city. Thanks to the initial feedback, we have been able to see the scale of the test launched by Tesla, starting with the size of the area available for driving a Tesla Robotaxi. This does not cover all of Austin, but only the southern part.
It is currently estimated that between 10 and 20 Model S vehicles will be available. You would be involved in this self-driving car service. The service is available from 6 a.m. to midnight. Due to the available area, the service is not available for trips to the airport. Highways and complex intersections are also avoided. The service was launched Sunday afternoon, in exchange for a reservation fee of $4.20.
According to initial feedback, no incidents were reported during the first hours of the Tesla Robotaxi service. It must be said that safety measures are numerous. Tesla has reportedly added chase vehicles to monitor the rides (and passenger behavior), but not all rides were equipped with them, according to feedback from the first passengers. Tesla relies primarily on the presence of an employee in the front passenger seat, who appears to have a kill switch installed on the door handle to cut the circuit in case of an emergency.
This Tesla employee sitting in the front also helps verify the identity of passengers. Tesla asks them to present their application before the ride can start. To continue communicating with the car, passengers interact with the screen in the back, inviting them to fasten their seatbelts before starting. Via the app, it is also possible to synchronize your music streaming app so that the Robotaxi plays personalized playlists.
An "excellent" drive, but passengers invited by Tesla
Overall, the first passengers described the autonomous driving of these first robotaxis as "smooth," "smooth," and "excellent," although we should take their initial feedback with a grain of salt, as they mainly represent brand fans, having received an invitation from the brand to test the new service. Most of the trips took place at a speed below 65 km/h. The first reports also indicate a struggle to find where the Robotaxi was going to park, before the race.
A rare bug filmed and broadcast on X can be seen on the TexasTSLA account:
The Verge, however, spotted a first response on X, by the account "Dirty Tesla", indicating that he had managed to crash Tesla's Robotaxi system, and that support had to take control. At the same time, the head of the autonomous driving team, Ashok Elluswamy, posted a photo on X showing a whole team in front of several monitors, broadcasting live footage of the service in the city. Ashok Elluswamy added the caption "Robotaxi launch party."
According to Elon Musk, the Full Self-Driving (FSD) service used in the Model Y Robotaxi service would be used in a version not yet available to customers of the electric SUV. The version would therefore be more advanced, and should be used in more than a thousand vehicles in the coming months, according to the brand's CEO. As a reminder, its main competitor, Waymo, backed by Google, has more than 1,500 of its autonomous cars in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Phoenix, and Austin, and plans to expand soon to Atlanta, Miami, and Washington DC.
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