Tesla just launched its much-anticipated robotaxi pilot service in Austin, Texas, marking a big moment in its push toward fully autonomous driving.
The pilot kicked off on Sunday, June 22, 2025, and it’s already catching attention for its price point and tech setup.
The trial uses modified Tesla Model Y vehicles, each loaded with the company’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) software. Right now, every ride costs a flat $4.20. There’s no one behind the wheel, just a “safety monitor” in the passenger seat ready to intervene if needed.
Elon Musk celebrated the rollout on X, calling it the “culmination of a decade of hard work” by Tesla’s AI and chip teams. He’s betting big on the robotaxi vision, and fast. Tesla says it plans to expand the service aggressively, deploying hundreds of autonomous vehicles in cities like San Francisco, Los Angeles, and San Antonio by the end of 2026.
This pilot is only the beginning. Tesla aims to ditch modified vehicles entirely by launching purpose-built designs: the Cybercab and Robovan. These future models will be fully autonomous with no steering wheel or pedals. Production for those is expected to begin in 2026.
Still, the path to fully driverless mobility isn’t all smooth. Tesla’s FSD system relies only on cameras, no LiDAR, which other players like Waymo and Zoox consider essential for safety. Critics continue to raise flags about the camera-only approach, especially after past incidents of abrupt braking and issues with narrow operational zones.
Despite this, initial user reviews in Austin are largely positive. Early riders report smooth, clean rides with little need for the safety monitor to step in. It’s a promising start, even if the service is currently limited to a small section of the city with only a few cars on the road.
Paul Miller, an analyst at Forrester, called the launch a “low-key affair” but noted its potential. “As expected, only a handful of vehicles are available right now, they only operate in a small part of the city and there’s a safety driver in the vehicle in case it encounters situations it cannot handle autonomously,” he said.
According to Miller, Tesla is banking on scale and affordability. If the company can flood the market with thousands of camera-based autonomous vehicles, it might undercut competitors using more expensive tech. Tesla’s bet is simple: get more cars out faster and make them cheaper.
This Austin rollout is just a glimpse of what Tesla wants to achieve, a future where you hail a ride with no driver and no steering wheel, just software and sensors doing the work. Whether that vision becomes reality will depend on how well Tesla handles safety, regulation, and real-world challenges. For now, it’s game on in the robotaxi race.
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