Tesla boss Elon Musk has just taken the wraps off a prototype of the automaker’s long-awaited robotaxi.
Tesla’s CEO performed the unveiling at a special event at the Warner Bros Studios in Burbank, California, on Thursday night after being driven to the stage by the new autonomous vehicle. The “Cybercab,” as Musk is calling it, sports a futuristic look and comes with butterfly doors that open upwards. The electric vehicle has ditched the steering wheel and pedals, and uses inductive charging instead of a plug. You can see the driverless Cybercab in action in the video below:
Robotaxi is premium point-to-point electric transport, accessible to everyone pic.twitter.com/oLykwaaTHm
— Tesla (@Tesla) October 11, 2024
Musk said Tesla hopes to start producing the Cybercab in 2026, though he admitted that he tends to be “a little optimistic” with forecasts.
During the presentation, in something of a surprise, the company also unveiled a much larger autonomous vehicle — the Robovan — that Musk said will be able to carry people or goods:
Here are more images of both vehicles:
Robotaxi & Robovan pic.twitter.com/pI2neyJBSL
— Tesla (@Tesla) October 11, 2024
Later on, those in attendance were allowed to take a tour of the studio lot in one of the 20 Cybercabs that Tesla brought to the event.
Earlier this year, the Tesla app added a new ridesharing feature that it plans to use for the robotaxi service. Musk has said previously that an owner of a Tesla robotaxi would be able to recoup their financial outlay for the vehicle by releasing it for autonomous ridesharing trips when they’re not using it.
Tesla already produces cars with advanced autonomous capabilities, but a driver has to always be present and in control. Still, its experience in the self-driving space stands it in good stead as it seeks to launch a full-fledged robotaxi service. But regulators will first have to be satisfied of the vehicle’s safe operation.
Tesla will be competing against the likes of Alphabet-owned Waymo and GM-backed Cruise, which have been working on autonomous vehicle technology for many years. Waymo has been using its robocars to carry paying passengers in a number of cities for several years now, though the service is limited and tightly controlled by regulators. Cruise has had a tougher time, with a number of incidents during on-road testing forcing the company to pause operations last year. It’s now making a cautious return to public roads again.
