Everything we know about the launch of Robotaxi de Tesla in Austin

Teslahas been expected for a long time robotaxi is finally hitting the streets this weekend, but deployment can face roadblocks.

THE Elon Musk-The company of directed electric vehicles is expected to deploy Robotaxis in Austin, Texas, on Sunday, with the first driver’s without driver’s trip to a customer house expected on June 28.

Musk shared the news of the provisional beginnings in an article on social networks X platform Last week.

Here is what we know about the Tesla event so far.

When and where

The launch will include a limited number of Tesla vehicles that will start in Austin on Sunday. The initial rides will be in the Y model and not the Cybercab It was revealed in October.

Access to vehicles and journeys is only by invitation. Some influencers on social networks have reported Receive invitations to early access to test the new service from Sunday.

The rides will also occur in a geofisée of the city and the distant drivers will monitor as a backup.

Musk told David Faber de CNBC that Robotaxis would operate in Austin’s parties that the company “would consider as sure” and said Tesla “watches” cars in distant operations centers.

Can Musk keep promises?

Musk has long praised a driver Robotaxi, and the pressure is on the billionaire to keep his promises. As early as 2019, Musk said it was “very confident” that Robotaxie will be launched in 2020.

In May, Musk confirmed his intention to make his debut Austin This month, with launches later for Los Angeles and San Francisco. At the time, Musk said the service will be launched with 10 vehicles circulating Austin.

“It is prudent for us to start with a small number, to confirm that things are fine, then to make it evolve,” he said Faber de CNBC.

Wall Street analysts such as Wedbush Dan Ives I think Robotaxie will inaugurate “the golden era of autonomy for Tesla” which could feed its market capitalization with more than 2 dollars by the end of next year.

It is almost double its market value of the fence on Wednesday.

“There will be many setbacks … But given its unrivaled scale and its scope in the world, we think that Tesla has the possibility of having the autonomous market and allowing itself to allow its technology to other automotive players in the United States and in the world,” he wrote in a note.

Tesla, once considered a leader in autonomous technology, is now a Lagcard, trying to catch up Alphabet-Awnwing Waymo in the United States

WaymoWho said they’ve reached 10 million trips in May, already operates a fleet of commercial robotaxis across the United States and is also looking for permission to test its autonomous vehicles, with a human security driver on board, in New York.

Regulatory obstacles and opposition

Tesla faces a upcoming junk road, strewn with regulatory obstacles and decrease in legislators.

Wednesday, a group of Democratic legislators In Texas, Tesla called Tesla to repel its launch of Robotaxi until September 1, when Texas deploys a new list of autonomous laws.

“We believe that this is in the best interest of public security and the construction of the public transport operation,” said the group in a letter addressed to the Director of Quality of the Tesla field, Eddie Gates. They also asked for “detailed information demonstrating that Tesla will comply with the new law” if it goes forward with the launch.

Public security defenders Protest the launch in Austin earlier this month.

A group known as the Dawn Project, a technological security organization that criticizes Tesla’s autonomous capacities, has demonstrated a Tesla Model Y with “Full Auto-Driving” software currently available in front of a school bus stopped and hitting a model of children. The group said it was a situation where the software has misunderstood the road elements.

“Every human … according to the law would have stopped when they saw the school bus stop with the flashing lights. They would have stopped,” said the founder of the Dawn project, Dan O’Dowd, in CNBC “Squawk in the street” Friday.

O’Dowd, who also directs Green Hills Software, a company that sells technology to Tesla competitors, told CNBC that the software was “far from finished” and should not go down the street.

“This software does not know how to recognize a school bus,” he said.

Tesla’s FSD capacities, which have a supervised FSD or FSD, include management and automatic parking, but have been connected to accidents and deaths, according to data followed by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Tesla under fire

Tesla’s brand has undergone several strokes in recent months with a drop in sales and reputation damage linked to Musk’s political activities.

Musk was a major supporter of the president Donald TrumpChannel hundreds of millions in his re -election campaign and later leading his effectiveness effort from the Ministry of Government efficiency aimed at reducing costs. He Leaving the department At the end of May.

The narrow links of Musk with Trump’s White House led the owners to separate from the brand and, in some cases, led to violence, with exhibition halls and targeted vehicles in Criminal fire and vandalism Attacks.

But the relationship between Musk and Trump embarked earlier this month after Titan technology has reprimanded the president expenditure on X, leading to a Drastic sale in the stock. It later excuse For his publications on social networks, saying that some “went too far”.

The manufacturer of electric vehicles also notes a global drop in sales weighing on key markets such as the United States and Europe. Vehicle sales in Europe Tip 49% compared to a year ago In April, while Global first trimester deliveries dropped by 13%.

The drop was linked to a combination of Musk policy and increased competition on the electric vehicle market.

– Lora Kolodny of CNBC contributed to this report.