Tesla is betting on Robotaxi this year.
Instead of launching in the United States (subject to numerous regulatory approvals across various states), probably Tesla is pushing for a soft launch in Mainland China …
Bullish or bearish?
US seeks answers from Tesla in Autopilot recall probe
U.S. auto safety investigators are seeking detailed answers and documents from Tesla in a probe into the automaker's December recall of more than 2 million vehicles to install new Autopilot safeguards.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said last month it was investigating after receiving reports of 20 crashes involving vehicles that had the Autopilot software updates installed under Tesla's recall. The agency's letter said it had identified "several concerns", regarding the recall.
Tesla said in December its largest-ever recall covering 2.03 million U.S. vehicles – or nearly all of its vehicles on U.S. roads – was to better ensure drivers pay attention when using its advanced driver assistance system.
The NHTSA recall investigation covers models Y, X, S, 3 and Cybertruck vehicles in the U.S. equipped with Autopilot produced between the 2012 and 2024 model years.
Tesla, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment, has said repeatedly that Autopilot does not make vehicles self-driving and is intended for use with a fully attentive driver who is prepared to take over and has hands on the steering wheel.
NHTSA said it had sent Tesla an information request letter, which was made public on Tuesday, seeking details of the recall and documents by July 1.
NHTSA wants comparative data from Tesla on the performance of vehicles after receiving the recall including the number of hands on wheel warnings issued.
The agency said it had concerns after those 20 crashes as well as results from preliminary NHTSA tests of updated vehicles following Tesla's five-part recall remedy.
One issue under investigation is Tesla's recall allows drivers to set how they activate Autopilot by either allowing a single-pull or double-pull of the drive stalk.
NHTSA's letter said the single-pull activation of Autopilot "is not the default setting on vehicles that received the remedy in the field" and testing "showed it was possible to make this change while driving."
Tesla has also made additional updates to reduce crashes including high speed captive turn lane collisions that are not part of the recall.
NHTSA said it "will assess the timing and driving factors behind these updates, their impacts on subject vehicle field performance, and Tesla’s basis for not including them".
Last month, NHTSA said it found evidence that "Tesla’s weak driver engagement system was not appropriate for Autopilot’s permissive operating capabilities" and that this results in a "critical safety gap."
NHTSA said during its Autopilot safety probe launched in August 2021 that it had identified at least 13 Tesla crashes involving at least one death and many more involving serious injuries in which "foreseeable driver misuse of the system played an apparent role."
NHTSA noted Tesla's December recall "allows a driver to readily reverse" the software update.
Elon Musk proposed to launch robotaxis in China during April visit, state media report says
Elon Musk proposed testing Tesla's advanced driver-assistance package in China by deploying it in robotaxis, during his recent visit to the country, the state-backed China Daily newspaper reported on Wednesday, citing sources.
Chinese officials told the Tesla CEO that China "welcomes Tesla to do some robotaxi tests in the country" and hopes it can "set a good example", the newspaper quoted the sources as saying.
However, Chinese authorities did not immediately approve its widespread use of Full Self-Driving (FSD) functions, the newspaper added.
Before the full rollout of its FSD functions, Tesla still needs to get approval to collect and transfer data that Tesla's cars need to train its driver-assistance features. The newspaper added that this issue wasn't discussed in detail during Musk's visit.
A person briefed on the matter told Reuters that Tesla is seeking to apply to launch the robotaxi tests in Shanghai, where the company's largest factory globally is located.
Tesla and the Shanghai city government did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The China Daily report comes shortly after Tesla CEO Elon Musk made a whirlwind weekend trip to Beijing late last month, where he met Chinese Premier Li Qiang.
Musk on the trip intended to discuss the rollout of FSD and whether Tesla could secure government approvals to transfer data overseas that could prove pivotal in its development of autonomous vehicles, Reuters previously reported.
FSD is the most autonomous version of Autopilot software and was rolled out in 2020. Its features include self-parking, auto lane changes and traffic navigation.
Among the wins during Musk's trip, which was first reported by Reuters, was a key endorsement from a top Chinese auto association that said Tesla's Model 3 and Y cars were compliant with data-security regulations. That would enable local governments to allow Tesla cars into parts of China they were previously barred from, Chinese media reported, citing a statement from Tesla.
Tesla has also reached an agreement with Baidu to use the Chinese tech giant's mapping license for data collection on China's public roads, according to two people who at the time described that as a step toward FSD rollout in China.
The China Daily newspaper, however, citing a source close to Baidu, said that the deal only meant that the accuracy of Baidu's maps provided to Tesla would be improved and that it had no direct relation with FSD.
Baidu did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Musk has abandoned a longstanding goal for Tesla to make affordable electric cars for the masses and is looking to focus on autonomous driving software, robotaxis and its humanoid robot Optimus.
Last month, the company mentioned a "purpose-built robotaxi product" that it planned to build with a "revolutionary" manufacturing process, without offering a timeline for its release.
China has been at the forefront in the development of self-driving cars, and companies such as Baidu and Toyota-backed Pony.ai have launched robotaxi services in limited test zones in several cities.
