Tesla is about to reveal its self-driving robotaxi, a purpose-built autonomous vehicle that’s supposed to reposition the company as a leader in AI and robotics.
The new robotaxi will be revealed at Warner Bros. movie studios in Burbank, California, where Tesla has reportedly been collecting fresh mapping data in the lead-up to the event. Tesla has a lot of ground to cover to prove it can launch a driverless vehicle that can compete with robotaxi rivals like Waymo and Cruise. And Elon Musk is expected to outline his vision for the Tesla Network, in which Tesla owners can add their autonomous vehicles to a robotaxi fleet when they’re not using them.
Tesla was originally planning to reveal the robotaxi in August, but Musk pushed the date to October 10th to allow for more time to work on the prototype. The company could also have some surprises up its sleeve. Could a cheaper Tesla be coming? Maybe there’s time being set aside to reveal the rumored “Juniper” Model Y? Perhaps a self-driving van?
Tesla sent out invites to the event with the title “We, Robot,” a reference to Isaac Asimov’s seminal work I, Robot. It could also indicate that we’ll get an update on the company’s humanoid Optimus bot. But we’ll have to watch the livestream to find out, as the company has only invited a limited number of people, including investors and influencers.
When is Tesla’s Robotaxi Event
Tesla’s “We, Robot” robotaxi presentation will take place on Thursday, October 10th, at 10PM ET / 9PM CT / 7PM PT.
How to watch Tesla’s Robotaxi Event
Tesla will host a livestream of the robotaxi event on X. The company will have some shareholders at the event who were selected in a raffle.
This robotaxi isn’t your car
Since 2019, Musk has promised that Full Self-Driving-capable vehicles will eventually be able to make money for their owners by operating autonomously on a “Tesla Network” to chauffeur people around. He promised that a “million” robotaxis would be driving around by 2020, but that goalpost kept moving further down the field.
Although Tesla’s Level 2 driver-assist system is pretty capable, it has yet to prove it can go driverless with just a camera-based vision system, compared to existing robotaxi companies that use multiple redundant sensors, including lidar. The robotaxi, which Bloomberg reports will be a two-seater with butterfly doors, will supplement privately owned vehicles that are added to the Tesla Network.
A heavily camouflaged and weirdly shaped yellow car was spied on site that may have more than just cameras. The company did buy a bunch of lidar sensors from Luminar in order to validate its robotaxi testing. Musk has called lidars a “crutch” for autonomous vehicles and insisted that the camera-based Tesla Vision system is the way forward.
A lot is riding on the success of Tesla’s robotaxi. Musk is pivoting the company to robots and autonomous systems just as the company’s EV sales have faltered.
What’s Optimus up to?
Tesla’s humanoid Optimus robot is also likely going to get some time in the spotlight. The robot is supposed to be able to perform “useful tasks” by the end of this year. And Musk said it’ll be a product you could buy by the end of 2025. As with all lofty goals, take it with a grain of salt — but we can expect to see an update to Optimus on Thursday. After all, the event is called “We, Robot.”
New car surprise
Musk has indicated to shareholders that a new and cheaper Tesla is back on the menu after early reports suggested it was being scrapped. A $25,000 Tesla could disrupt the EV market by finally fulfilling the demand for cheaper electric cars and could compete with lower-cost Chinese EVs.
However, Tesla could also release a more affordable Model 3 to fill that market instead of creating a promised cheaper “Gen 3” platform. Tesla recently discontinued the standard range Model 3, which was its cheapest vehicle under $40,000.
The last time Tesla had an Apple-style “one more thing” surprise was the reveal of the new Tesla Roadster at the Tesla Semi event in 2017. The Roadster still hasn’t entered production, but now Musk says that’ll happen next year. We could also just get an update on the expected “Juniper” redesign of the Model Y.
But the robotaxi will be the star of the show. And with so much riding on its success, it will certainly be interesting to hear Musk outline his vision for its future.