Tesla CEO Musk unveils ‘Cybercab’, ‘Robovan’ as focus shifts to automation

“The autonomous aboriginal is here,” Musk said. “We person 50 afloat autonomous cars present tonight. You’ll spot exemplary Ys and the Cybercab. All driverless.”

The Cybercab volition outgo 20 cents a mile to run implicit time, usage inductive chargers and not necessitate immoderate plugs. They volition besides trust lone connected cameras and artificial intelligence, without the request for different hardware that robotaxi players use.

Musk besides showcased a larger, self-driving conveyance – called Robovan – susceptible of carrying up to 20 people, and showed disconnected Tesla’s Optimus humanoid robot.

Enthusiasm astir the lawsuit has been connected show crossed societal media for weeks, with screenshots of invites and speculation connected what mightiness beryllium disclosed. But investors and analysts person flagged challenges with the exertion and reined successful expectations.

Musk’s program is to run a fleet of self-driving Tesla taxis that passengers tin hail done an app. Individual Tesla owners volition besides beryllium capable to marque wealth connected the app by listing their vehicles arsenic robotaxis.

Thursday’s lawsuit astatine the Warner Bros workplace adjacent Los Angeles, California, is titled “We, Robot” – an evident motion to the “I, Robot” science-fiction abbreviated stories by American writer Isaac Asimov, but besides echoes Musk’s insistence that Tesla “should beryllium thought of arsenic an AI robotics company” alternatively than an automaker.

Those attending included investors, banal analysts and Tesla fans.

“Everything looks cool, but not overmuch successful presumption of clip lines, I’m a shareholder and beauteous disappointed. I deliberation the marketplace wanted much definitive clip lines,” said Dennis Dick, equity trader astatine Triple D Trading. “I don’t deliberation helium said overmuch astir anything… He didn’t springiness overmuch info.”

Missed Promises

Musk said successful 2019 helium was “very confident” the institution would person operational robotaxis by the adjacent year. After missed promises, Musk this twelvemonth diverted his absorption to processing the vehicles aft scrapping plans to physique a smaller, cheaper car wide seen arsenic indispensable to countering slowing EV demand.

Tesla is astatine hazard of posting its first-ever diminution successful deliveries this twelvemonth arsenic buying incentives person failed to pull capable customers to its aging EV lineup. Steep terms cuts meant to offset precocious involvement rates person besides squeezed nett margins.

Complicated exertion and choky regularisation person led to cardinal of dollars successful nonaccomplishment for different companies attempting to ace the robotaxi market, forcing immoderate to unopen shop.

Some are inactive pushing, including General Motors’ Cruise, Amazon’s Zoox and Chinese firms specified arsenic WeRide.

Unlike costly hardware specified arsenic lidar that others use, Musk is relying lone connected cameras and AI to tally FSD to support costs down. But FSD, which requires changeless operator attention, has faced regulatory and ineligible scrutiny with astatine slightest 2 fatal accidents involving the technology.