Tesla's Ride-Hailing Growth: What's Really Going On?

Tesla has been actively growing its ride-hailing fleet in California. Since the service launched in August, they've added over 1,655 vehicles to their fleet. However, the actual number of vehicles in operation might be higher. Why? Because companies aren't required to update authorities on the number of drivers they add. So, the registered vehicles might not give the full picture.

Tesla's Ride-Hailing Service

Tesla's ride-hailing service in California isn't autonomous. It's not registered as a driverless fleet, and Tesla hasn't applied for a driverless permit in the state. This has raised some concerns among officials in the past. Meanwhile, other companies like Waymo and Zoox have also been expanding their fleets in California.

• Waymo, backed by Alphabet, has over 1,955 autonomous vehicles registered.
• Zoox, owned by Amazon, has 229 vehicles.

Elon Musk's Confirmation

Elon Musk, Tesla's CEO, has confirmed that they've been testing driverless Robotaxis in Austin. A Model Y was spotted on the streets without any occupants. Additionally, an updated Tesla Cybercab was seen on Austin streets, but it's unclear if it was being driven by a human or operating autonomously.

Waymo's Blackout

In other news, a blackout in San Francisco temporarily halted Waymo's Robotaxi fleet. Several Waymo Jaguar I-Pace Robotaxis were stranded in the middle of the road. The outage affected over 130,000 customers in the city.

Tesla's Challenges

Tesla has been facing some challenges this year. Their sales have declined, and a court recently suspended their license to manufacture and sell vehicles in California. The court's decision was based on the company's marketing around the Autopilot and Full Self-Driving (FSD) features, which the court found misleading. It's important to note that Tesla's vehicles still require human supervision for autonomous driving.