Elon Musk has set another aggressive deadline for Tesla’s self-driving ambitions. Speaking via video at an xAI hackathon, the Tesla CEO said unsupervised robotaxis would be operating in Austin, Texas “in about three weeks,” with plans to remove safety monitors from Model Y vehicles in the company’s local ride-hailing fleet by the end of 2025.
Musk described Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) system as “pretty much solved,” adding that a new FSD model is expected in early 2026. The comments are his latest attempt to convince investors that autonomy, not just selling cars, will drive Tesla’s long-term value.
A small fleet, big expectations
Tesla’s current robotaxi operations are still relatively modest. In Austin, the company runs a ride-hailing pilot with human “safety monitors” in the passenger seat, while employees sit behind the wheel in the Bay Area. Musk has promised to double the Austin fleet to around 60 vehicles by the end of December, far below a previous target of 500 by year-end.
He has also floated ambitions to operate in eight to ten major U.S. metro areas by the end of 2025, with Phoenix likely to become the next city to host Tesla robotaxis. That would put Tesla in more direct competition with established autonomous-ride services such as Waymo and Cruise, even as regulators scrutinise safety records across the sector.
Markets weigh the robotaxi bet
Investors’ Business Daily reports that Tesla shares have been volatile around the latest comments, bouncing off their 50-day moving average and approaching a potential breakout level near 474. Analysts at Morgan Stanley recently raised their price target to 425, calling FSD the “crown jewel” of Tesla’s auto business and a potential long-term competitive edge.
At the same time, Tesla’s autonomy promises have slipped repeatedly over the past decade. Regulators in the U.S. and Europe continue to investigate accidents involving driver-assistance systems, and Tesla still describes FSD as a “supervised” feature in official documentation, requiring drivers to remain attentive.
What it means for the future of driving
If Musk’s three-week countdown delivers even a small fleet of truly unsupervised robotaxis in Austin, it would be a symbolic milestone for both Tesla and the broader autonomous-driving industry. If it slips, it will add to a long list of missed deadlines that critics say have helped inflate expectations beyond what the technology can currently deliver.
For consumers in markets like Lebanon, where modern EV infrastructure is still limited, these developments can feel distant. But the outcome will shape global standards: from how insurers price risk, to how cities design streets, to how other automakers – including those popular in the Middle East – prioritise driver-assistance features versus full autonomy.
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