Tesla's CEO Elon Musk had previously informed investors about launching an "automated ride-hailing service" by June in Texas. According to a recent report by autoevolution, the company's Chief Designer Franz von Holzhausen announced on Jay Leno's talk show that Tesla plans to roll out the Cybercab service this summer in Austin, Texas. This move marks Tesla's official entry into the autonomous taxi market, posing a new challenge to competitors like Alphabet's (GOOGL) Waymo.
As of Tuesday, Tesla's (TSLA, Financial) pre-market stock price experienced a slight dip of 0.72%, trading at $348.19 per share. During the show, von Holzhausen mentioned that testing is underway in Texas, with the service slated to launch in June. He highlighted the futuristic nature of this technology, which is already present in every Tesla vehicle. However, he did not disclose specific details about the Cybercab service, such as the operational scale in Austin or plans for expansion to other cities.
Tesla is currently facing challenges with slowing growth momentum, reporting its first annual delivery decline and underperforming relative to Wall Street's expectations in the last quarter. Additionally, the company has revised its 2025 outlook downward. In this context, the introduction of the Robotaxi service may be a strategy to maintain Tesla's trillion-dollar market valuation. By showcasing its strengths in artificial intelligence and autonomous driving, Tesla aims to attract investor interest and reignite market enthusiasm.
