Speaking at the meeting where Tesla's third-quarter financial results were announced, Vice President of Autonomous Driving, Ashok Elluswamy, indicated the second quarter of 2027 as the target for customers to be able to integrate their own vehicles into the robotaxi fleet.
Long-Awaited Feature is Coming
According to Elluswamy, the Cybercab and Model Y use the same autonomous driving software. The company plans to make this software available to customers with the V15 version. However, a mere software update will not be sufficient for consumer-owned vehicles to join the robotaxi network. The vehicles must be integrated into Tesla's defined geographical usage limits and the company's fleet management systems.
The Tesla executive stated that following these preparations, the first customer vehicles could be integrated into the robotaxi fleet around the second quarter of 2027. This announcement could pave the way for Tesla owners to use their vehicles not just for personal transportation but also to join the company's ride-hailing network.
On the other hand, this statement should not be taken as definitive. This is not an official declaration from the company, and similar statements from Tesla executives have missed their targets in the past.
Elon Musk's Robotaxi Promise Has Been Awaiting for Years
For instance, Tesla CEO Elon Musk has been talking for years about a system where customers could convert their vehicles into autonomous taxis and earn income. In 2019, at the company's first AI Day event, Musk announced a robotaxi network plan called Tesla Network. In this model, vehicle owners' cars would autonomously seek passengers, offering an Uber-like service and generating income for their owners.
At the same time, Musk claimed that there would be one million robotaxis on the roads by 2020. However, neither this goal nor the plan for customers to earn robotaxi income from their own vehicles has materialized to date.
Tesla has recently been operating a few hundred robotaxis in small areas of Texas and Florida in the US. Some of these vehicles still have human safety operators. The company has also deployed a few dozen fully autonomous Cybercabs in Austin.
Tesla's plan to expand its existing robotaxi fleet includes customer-owned vehicles, in addition to vehicles specifically developed for this purpose. However, it is not yet clear in which regions, under what conditions, and when customer vehicles will be able to transport passengers.
Furthermore, the only obstacle to integrating personal vehicles into the robotaxi network is not the maturity of Tesla's FSD system. Driverless passenger transportation may require special local and state-level permits depending on the operating region. Establishing insurance coverage is also a significant hurdle. In many parts of the US, the necessary legal framework for individuals or independent companies to transport passengers with their own driverless vehicles does not yet exist. Vehicle hardware could also limit the scope of the plan. Especially some older Model 3 and Model Y vehicles do not have the next-generation Full Self-Driving hardware or the necessary artificial intelligence processing power.
0 Comments: