Tesla’s robotaxi occasion is delayed till October

A protracted-awaited Tesla occasion showcasing a robotaxi platform is being delayed from August till someday in October, Bloomberg experiences. The information has solely been shared inside the corporate thus far, based on sources, who add that the design staff engaged on prototypes was informed it needed to rework some parts. Extra prototype autos are additionally stated to be wanted earlier than the occasion can go off.

CEO Elon Musk initially teased the robotaxi showcase in April 2024, when he set an August 8 goal date. However little else has been heard in regards to the occasion since, which can imply that the date was a hopeful projection on Musk’s half fairly than based mostly on formulated plans. The manager is understood to generally make claims in public that his personal employees aren’t ready for, such because the second-generation Roadster — nonetheless unreleased — being sooner than first supposed.

Technical hurdles are commonplace fare within the self-driving automotive trade, nevertheless. Whereas there are already robotaxis working in US cities like Phoenix and San Francisco, even these are coping with occasional navigation issues, reminiscent of being overly cautious or stopping after they should not. With non-public autos, in the meantime, Tesla’s personal Full Self-Driving function has generally been criticized as unreliable and deployed to house owners too early.

What’s going to the Tesla robotaxi appear to be?

We cannot know for certain till the press occasion, particularly for the reason that robotaxi program has been in flux. Tesla at one level needed its taxi and $25,000 “Mannequin 2” to share the identical platform, however feedback from Musk recommend the taxi is now being purpose-built, probably ditching a steering wheel solely. Even the destiny of the Mannequin 2 is unknown — whereas Musk has denied claims that the undertaking was canceled, constructing a top quality EV beneath $30,000 — and sometimes $40,000, for that matter — has been a significant problem for US automakers.

Complicating the scenario are the large layoffs Musk ordered earlier in 2024, impacting over 10% of Tesla’s workforce. Most manufacturing automation is a purpose of the corporate, however a number of the individuals compelled out had been on the corporate’s design and engineering groups.