Tesla will reveal its robotaxi product on Aug. 8, CEO Elon Musk said in a social media post on X.
Musk has spoken about the robotaxi project for years, and it could represent a major new business for the carmaker as investors grow wary of the company during a period of slowing growth.
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In 2015, Elon Musk told shareholders that Tesla's cars would achieve "full autonomy" within three years. In 2016, he said Tesla would able to send one of its cars on a cross-country drive without requiring any human intervention by the end of the following year.
Tesla still has yet to deliver a robotaxi, autonomous vehicle or technology that can turn its cars into "level 3" automated vehicles. However, Tesla offers advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), including a standard Autopilot option or premium Full Self-Driving "FSD" option, the latter of which costs $199 per month for U.S. subscribers or $12,000 upfront.
In a push for end-of-quarter sales, Musk recently mandated that all sales and service staff install and demo FSD for customers before handing over the keys. He wrote in an email to employees, "Almost no one actually realizes how well (supervised) FSD actually works. I know this will slow down the delivery process, but it is nonetheless a hard requirement."
Despite its name, Tesla's premium option requires a human driver at the wheel, ready to steer or brake at any moment.
so the idiots reading a book on the freeway are also paying through the nose to do it