Overview
- Tesla confirmed a small number of public robotaxi trips in Austin without a safety monitor, with executives calling it a limited start.
- The deployment mixes a few unsupervised vehicles into a larger supervised fleet, and some driverless runs are followed by chase cars for validation.
- Local ride tests and recent videos show many trips still include human monitors, underscoring a gradual transition to unsupervised service.
- Musk told Davos attendees he expects a widespread U.S. robotaxi network by the end of 2026, while California service continues to require human drivers.
- Musk cautioned that Cybercab and Optimus production will start very slowly, with Tesla still targeting Cybercab volume output in 2026 and rivals like Waymo operating far larger fully driverless services.