Elon Musk says Tesla will reveal its robotaxi on August 8

Tesla will reveal its long-promised robotaxi on August 8, Elon Musk simply posted on X. The upcoming autonomous car is claimed to be constructed on Tesla's next-generation car platform.

This announcement got here on the identical day reuters The corporate has scrapped its plans to make a extra affordably priced electrical car, which is claimed to be priced within the $25,000 vary, the report stated. Musk reportedly instructed staff that as an alternative of constructing a mass-market EV, he wished to focus solely on an autonomous car that might make different autos out of date.

Musk has lengthy teased the opportunity of a Tesla robotaxi, even displaying off a completely lined car throughout a 2023 occasion unveiling the corporate's third grasp plan. Years in the past, he predicted that Tesla homeowners would be capable of earn income by sending their autonomous automobiles to choose up and drop off passengers.

This might be the so-called “Tesla Community”, as described in Musk's grasp plan Half Deux. “You'll additionally be capable of add your automotive to Tesla's shared fleet by tapping a button on the Tesla Cellphone app,” he wrote, “and it will generate revenue for you, which is able to largely offset while you're at work or on trip.” And typically probably exceeding the month-to-month mortgage or lease value.”

A few years later these plans grew to become even grander. Musk stated in 2019, “By the center of subsequent 12 months, we could have a couple of million Tesla automobiles on the highway with full self-driving {hardware}.” Tesla's Full Self-Driving (FSD) characteristic can be so dependable that drivers can “go to sleep,” he added. (Teslas with the corporate's FSD software program will not be autonomous, and drivers can be suggested to not sleep of their automobiles. )

Musk's repeated claims that autonomous autos have been solely “a 12 months” or so away are actually a part of Tesla lore. His supporters level to the success of Autopilot after which FSD as proof that whereas his guarantees might not precisely correspond to actuality, he’s nonetheless on the forefront of the societal shift from human-driven autos to AI-driven autos . He's additionally constructing a military of humanoid employee bots to show the purpose that the know-how is formally agnostic.

However critics argue that he exaggerates the capabilities of the know-how, typically with lethal penalties. There have been a whole lot of accidents and dozens of deaths involving Tesla autos utilizing FSD and Autopilot. The corporate is dealing with a number of wrongful demise lawsuits. The US authorities is investigating the corporate's claims about self-driving, and a significant recall was introduced late final 12 months. Even the robotic appears flawed.

A robotaxi occasion in August is definitely in step with Tesla's behavior of placing on at the least two spectacular occasions yearly. Final 12 months, it was the grasp plan and Cybertruck supply program. Now, we learn about at the least half that for the corporate in 2024.