Qianzhou Zhihang CEO Yu Qian: Tesla Unlikely to Achieve Fully Autonomous Robotaxi by 2026

Yu Qian, co-founder and CEO of QCraft, recently stated in an interview with Tencent Auto that although both Tesla and Waymo are leaders in the autonomous driving field, they have taken different paths. Waymo has already achieved a breakthrough in driverless technology, with its Robotaxi service exceeding 2 million orders in a single month across multiple cities. Meanwhile, while Tesla has advanced commercialization by integrating its products and technology, its v14 version still falls significantly short of full driverless capability. Yu believes it will be difficult for Tesla to launch a truly driverless Robotaxi by 2026, as its current disengagement rate does not meet the requirements for large-scale operations—especially under China’s complex traffic conditions. He emphasized that Level 4 autonomous driving is not merely a technical challenge but also requires building a comprehensive system encompassing safety, service, and operations, an area where Tesla still needs substantial investment.