Tesla CEO Elon Musk says that Robotaxi service is “tentatively” set to begin in Austin, Texas on June 22. This comes after the company said last month that it had already begun testing driverless Model Ys in Austin. Shortly after that, Bloomberg reported that Tesla had internally discussed a launch date of June 12, though the only publicly shared timeline has been sometime in June.
The first Robotaxi Model Y operating without a person in the driver’s seat was spotted on South Congress in Austin yesterday. It sported a decal on the side of the vehicle that read “Robotaxi” in the same font as Tesla’s stylized version of Cybertruck. In the video, a person sitting in the passenger seat can be seen, though it’s unclear what their role is.
The driverless Model Y was followed closely behind by a Model Y with a driver, though again, their role and identity are unclear. Musk had previously said that Robotaxis will be remotely monitored at first and geofenced to areas of Austin that are the safest for the vehicles to navigate.
Musk, who has a history of playing fast and loose with timelines, had originally promised in 2019 that there would be one million Robotaxis on the road by 2020. He now says the company will start with about 10 taxis in Austin, before expanding rapidly.
Reuters recently attempted to gather more information on Tesla’s planned launch and vehicles from the City of Austin, but city officials were blocked from releasing any information by Tesla and the Texas Attorney General.
