Elon Musk recently announced that Tesla’s highly anticipated “robotaxi” prototype will be revealed at an event on October 10, after postponing the initial plan to unveil it on August 8. This delay was due to Musk’s decision to redesign certain elements of the prototype, including an important design change to the front.
During Tesla’s second-quarter earnings call, Musk also mentioned that the unveiling event will showcase “a couple of other things,” although he did not provide specific details. The robotaxi, along with the “unsupervised” full self-driving software that will operate them, is a crucial part of Tesla’s future plans.
Despite facing challenges in its EV sales, with a 45% drop in profit compared to the previous year, Tesla remains focused on developing AI-powered products. Musk emphasized the importance of autonomy for the company’s long-term value, highlighting the significance of self-driving cars and the humanoid robot project named Optimus.
While Tesla’s financial performance has been inconsistent, Musk believes that autonomy is the key to the company’s success. He aims to make the robotaxi accessible through Tesla’s app, allowing users to share their own vehicles on the network once the Full Self-Driving software is advanced enough for all driving tasks.
Although Musk has faced criticism for failing to deliver on his promises of fully self-driving cars, he remains optimistic about the future. He mentioned that the first unsupervised robotaxi ride could potentially happen by the end of this year, but acknowledged that it might be delayed until 2025.
The upcoming event on October 10 will provide more insights into Tesla’s autonomous technology and the future of mobility. Despite the challenges Tesla has faced in the past, Musk’s vision for self-driving vehicles and AI-powered products continues to drive the company forward. Stay tuned for more updates on Tesla’s robotaxi and autonomy initiatives.