Tesla plans to launch robotaxis – or autonomous taxi – without steering wheel and pedals in 2024. That, at least, is what Elon Musk, the company’s CEO, revealed during an investor call following the release of Q1 2022 financial results.
The idea of turning Teslas into autonomous taxis isn’t new, but it is. This is the first time Elon Musk has set himself the goal of launching a car that is 100% focused on this type of use.. So far, the idea that Tesla has been pursuing has been that cars bought by private individuals can become autonomous taxis while not in use, thereby benefiting the car’s owner when they don’t need it.
On the other hand, what Musk described during a recent call with investors is a vehicle designed exclusively for this use. That is: a fleet of cars owned by Tesla, fully autonomous and constantly plying around the city. An approach similar to that used by other companies such as Waymo. They are also being pursued.
“I think this could be a very powerful product that we aim to go into large-scale production in 2024,” the South African mogul said. “I think this will be a huge source of growth for Tesla,” he continued.
Musk also said during the call that these autonomous taxis – or robot taxis – They will have a lower cost per mile than any other vehicle. “Look at some of our predictions. It looks like a ride in a robotic taxi will cost less than a bus ticket,” the tycoon said.
Tesla has certain hurdles to overcome
To launch such a product, Tesla must overcome three hurdles.
- The first one building the car. A process that Tesla has a two-year headroom for if they want to meet their 2024 goal for this product. However, it wouldn’t be a surprise if this new car was based on one of the cars the brand currently sells. such as Model 3–, which would allow them to shorten the path.
- legal framework managing a fully autonomous taxi fleet remains a challenge. And besides, it’s something very dependent on the country or region. Even if a product is ready on time, its commercial launch may be delayed if regulatory approvals are not given or objections arise in the process.
- Finally, Tesla will have to achieve by 2024 the full autonomous driving capability it has been promising for years.. At the moment, their cars have the ability to operate autonomously in certain situations – for example, when driving on the highway. However, it is the responsibility of the driver to be alert to take over control of the vehicle in case the system makes a mistake. That is: your system Full self driving at the moment it is ADAS of the second level, and not a fully autonomous driving technology. To launch the aforementioned autonomous car without a steering wheel or pedals, the brand would have had to further refine its approach. software and reach the goal that you have been striving for for a long time.
On the evolution of the system Full self drivingElon Musk assured that this is the project in which he has seen the most false dawns. “In order to sell fully autonomous driving, you need to solve AI problems in the real world. The highway system is built for biological neural networks and eyes. Thus, in order to solve the problem of autonomous driving, we must create neural networks and cameras with a level of capability that is equal to or superior to humans. And I think we will get to that this year,” he said.
Elon Musk’s promise, however, should be taken with skepticism. In the past, the South African-born mogul has also promised to solve the problem of fully autonomous driving by certain dates, but in all these cases, he was forced to back down due to various developmental difficulties.
The proof of this is that Elon Musk wanted the current Model Y to have no steering wheel or pedals, as well as the long-awaited autonomous taxi. However, the company was forced to abandon these plans due to the slow development of the system. Full self driving.
Source: Hiper Textual
