Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, announced via a post on the social media platform X that the company will unveil its robotaxi product on August 8th, sparking anticipation among investors for this potential new business avenue amid concerns about slowing growth.
Following Musk’s tweet, Tesla shares saw a surge of over 3% in extended trading. This disclosure came shortly after Reuters reported the cancellation of plans for Tesla’s highly awaited low-cost car model, prompting Musk to accuse the news agency of misinformation. Despite Musk’s previous promises about achieving “full autonomy” for Tesla’s cars within a few years, the company has yet to deliver on its robotaxi, autonomous vehicle, or “level 3” automated vehicle technology.
Nonetheless, Tesla offers advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), including the standard Autopilot option and the premium Full Self-Driving (FSD) option, the latter available for $199 per month for U.S. subscribers or $12,000 upfront. In a recent move to boost end-of-quarter sales, Musk mandated that all sales and service staff must install and demonstrate FSD for customers before vehicle delivery, emphasizing its efficacy under supervision. However, despite its name, Tesla’s premium FSD option still requires a human driver to be ready to take control when necessary.