Tesla Launches Driverless Robotaxi in Austin—User Fails to Hail Ride 38 Times

Tesla recently launched its driverless Robotaxi service to the public in Austin, Texas, but users are finding it extremely difficult to hail a ride. According to Teslarati, although the company has already met its goal—originally set for the end of 2025—of removing safety drivers and opened the service to the public last week, it has deployed only a very limited number of fully unattended vehicles. David Moss, a well-known Full Self-Driving (FSD) user, traveled specifically to Austin and attempted to book a ride 38 times over four days, all without success. Ashok Elluswamy, Tesla’s AI lead, stated that the company is currently conducting controlled testing by “adding a small number” of driverless vehicles into its fleet of cars that still have safety operators onboard, with plans to gradually increase the proportion over time. For now, it remains highly challenging for the general public to experience a fully unsupervised Robotaxi ride.