As expected, the transition team for President-elect Donald Trump is now reportedly looking to slash support for electric vehicle (EV) and charging programs set up by the Biden administration, along with lodging global tariffs and pushing to ease regulations on fossil-fuel emissions.
The Trump transition team is now looking at plans to ease regulations on the fossil fuel industry and to cut many EV programs, including the $7,500 EV tax credit, along with lodging tariffs on battery material imports worldwide, according to a document seen by Reuters this week.
As part of efforts to bolster the domestic supply chain for battery materials, many of which are produced in China and are heavily subsidized in the U.S., the transition team has recommended imposing tariffs on all battery materials around the world, before negotiating individual exemptions with allies, as the document shows.
“When he takes office, President Trump will support the auto industry, allowing space for both gas-powered cars and electric vehicles,” said Karoline Leavitt, spokesperson for the Trump transition team, in a statement.
RELATED: U.S. Supreme Court to hear challenge on California emission rule waiver
Although Trump campaigned on promises to end the $7,500 federal EV credit and official plans to kill the subsidy were reported last month, the transition team has also called for rolling back the $7.5 billion plan passed under Biden to help aid the buildout of charging stations for EVs.
Instead, the team has said that it would shift this and other funding currently going toward making EVs more affordable toward national defense efforts, including the initiative to secure battery supplies without relying on China. The document notes that these efforts would focus on shifting money toward battery material production, as well as the “national defense supply chain and critical infrastructure.”
The document suggested that the team utilize Section 232 tariffs, which are intended to limit the import of any items related to potential national security threats. Biden recently increased tariffs on several imports related to charging technology and critical minerals for EV batteries, including graphite, “permanent magnets” used in EV motors and in military applications, and lithium-ion batteries, among others, though the tariffs were issued on economic grounds, rather than on those in national security.
The transition team is also looking to waive environmental reviews to accelerate “federally funded EV infrastructure projects,” such as those in battery production and recycling, charging deployment, and manufacturing of critical minerals. Other proposals detailed in the document include:
- Ditching federal requirements for electrifying government fleets, including Biden’s policy to mandate all federal purchases by zero-emission vehicles by the end of 2027
- Using the Export-Import Bank of the U.S. to provide financial support for U.S. batteries for EVs
- Utilizing tariffs as a “negotiating tool” to encourage other markets to consider U.S. auto exports including both gas cars and EVs
- Ending restrictions on exports of EV battery technology to countries deemed adversaries
- Ending programs for the Department of Defense attempting to buy or develop electric military vehicle options
How will ending the $7,500 EV tax credit affect Tesla? Musk calls it a benefit
While many have said that ditching the $7,500 tax credit and other policies intended to help spur on the adoption of EVs could hurt Tesla, CEO Elon Musk and others have argued that it may only benefit the company by harming other automakers even more. Wedbush analyst Dan Ives said last month that the change would only “enable Tesla to further fend off competition from Detroit,” given its already decisive advantage in EV scale.
In his latest statement regarding EV subsidies, made on X last month, Musk called for the U.S. to “end all government subsidies, including those for EVs, oil and gas.”
Musk also campaigned with Donald Trump during the election and created the political action committee (PAC), dubbed America PAC, to support his candidacy financially. He has since gained a position in what the team has called the Department of Government Efficiency, and he’s expected to play a major role in the upcoming administration.
In a report last week, it was said that the Trump transition team is also considering getting rid of a mandatory reporting measure for automated driving systems, as part of a larger effort to remove regulations and push self-driving vehicle development forward more quickly. An additional report from last month also suggests that Trump is already looking to create federal rules surrounding the rollout of autonomous vehicles, expected to accelerate the deployment of commercial robotaxis and other self-driving technologies.
What are your thoughts? Let me know at zach@teslarati.com, find me on X at @zacharyvisconti, or send us tips at tips@teslarati.com.
Analysts weigh in on Trump presidency’s effects to U.S. auto sector
Need accessories for your Tesla? Check out the Teslarati Marketplace:
Tesla AI lead Ashok Elluswamy said this week that 24-hour Robotaxi service is close. Replying on X to a rider who wanted Cybercab trips all night, he wrote that the capability would arrive “next month or so” once “the next tech to merge on the v15 plan” is ready.
The comment landed on September 4, one day after Tesla opened public Cybercab rides in Austin. It is the clearest near-term timeline yet for overnight unsupervised operation. Tesla’s paid Robotaxi network currently runs from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. seven days a week across Austin, Dallas, Houston, Miami, Orlando, and Tampa.
next month or so. the next tech to merge on the v15 plan will enable it.
— Ashok Elluswamy (@aelluswamy) September 4, 2026
That 16-hour window is shorter than the 6 a.m. to 2 a.m. schedule the company used for much of the prior year.
Elluswamy did not name the specific feature or say whether the change would apply first to purpose-built Cybercabs, the existing Model Y fleet, or both. He also offered no city-by-city rollout list. The link to Full Self-Driving v15 is nevertheless significant.
Tesla has described v15 as a step-change architecture with seven parallel improvement tracks and roughly ten times more parameters than earlier builds. Early versions of that software already operate on the Robotaxi fleet and contain about 40 percent of the planned gains.
By July 2026, the unsupervised fleet had logged more than 380,000 miles across six cities in two states with what the company called an impeccable safety record and no notable incidents caused by the vehicles themselves. Tesla has repeatedly argued that camera-based end-to-end neural networks, rather than extra sensors, are the core of the solution.
Overnight service would test that claim in lower-light conditions and would also raise vehicle utilization, a key variable for Robotaxi unit economics. The company has already begun using public Superchargers at night and is building dedicated Robotaxi charging sites.
Riders have asked why software must change if the cars already drive in the dark. The practical answer appears to be reliability and scale: Tesla has held back mass expansion until more of the v15 stack is merged, citing the need for higher confidence before putting thousands of unoccupied vehicles on streets around the clock.
If the next module arrives on the timetable Elluswamy sketched, 24-hour service could begin in October 2026 in at least some markets.
That would mark a shift from a daytime-bounded pilot to a service that can run whenever demand exists, including the late-night hours that have so far remained out of reach.
Tesla is beginning to roll out Full Self-Driving Supervised v14.3.9 with a new active safety layer that can take control even when the driver is operating the car manually.
Tesla AI said the software can activate FSD on the driver’s behalf when an imminent collision is detected and Automatic Emergency Braking may not be enough. It may also engage if the system detects heavy distraction or an accidental FSD disengagement.
FSD Supervised v14.3.9 starting to roll out shortly
This release includes a new active safety feature set: FSD Supervised can now activate on your behalf when an imminent collision is detected and Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB) may not be enough.
It may also engage if we…
— Tesla AI (@Tesla_AI) September 4, 2026
The capability is essentially Automatic Collision Evasion. However, unlike conventional AEB, which mainly applies the brakes in a straight line, this feature can use steering, braking, and acceleration together if the car calculates that stopping alone will not prevent impact and a safer path exists. The system may change lanes or move toward a shoulder when conditions allow, then continue driving after the immediate threat is handled rather than simply coming to a stop.
The intervention is meant as a last-resort safety net, not a replacement for attentive driving.
Tesla Full Self-Driving v14.3.7 early review: FSD saved me from an accident
Tesla’s own description still frames FSD as supervised assistance. Secondary reports on internal release notes say the feature can fire while the car is being driven manually if cabin-camera monitoring suggests the driver is not sufficiently attentive, such as reaching toward the back seat, or if FSD appears to have been turned off unintentionally.
After the emergency maneuver, the car is expected to alert the driver and request a return to manual control.
The safety case is straightforward. Many collisions happen in the last second because a driver is looking away, fumbles a control, or faces an obstacle that braking cannot fully solve. A system that can both recognize that AEB is insufficient and execute a coordinated evasive path can reduce those remaining high-severity events.
Re-engaging after accidental disengagement also addresses a practical failure mode: a small steering nudge that drops FSD at the worst moment. The advantage is a background safety net that uses the same vision stack already running in v14, instead of leaving the car solely to emergency braking once the driver is no longer in command.
The feature still depends on FSD being enabled and, according to reports, an active FSD purchase or subscription. It does not make the vehicle unsupervised. Drivers remain responsible, and Tesla has not published how often the system is expected to intervene or how it will handle false positives.
If the rollout is conservative and the false-alarm rate stays low, the update is a meaningful step: FSD is no longer only a feature the driver turns on. In the rare moments when disaster is already forming, it can step in.
Tesla launched the all-electric, steering wheel-less, and pedal-less Cybercab last night at a quiet and small event in downtown Austin, Texas.
The launch, which marked the beginning of unsupervised ride-hailing for Tesla’s Robotaxi platform with Cybercab, has already caught the attention of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) who has more questions.
NHTSA opened an Audit Query (AQ) into the Cybercab’s Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) certification that Tesla gave the vehicle. Manufacturers self-certify vehicles much of the time to avoid excessive regulatory delays.
Tesla Cybercab interior, note the lack of steering wheel and pedals. (Credit: @niccruzpatane/X< /a>)
However, the agency needs more information; it said in a summary:
“On September 3, 2026, Tesla began commercial deployment with a small number of its Cybercab vehicles in Austin, Texas. Tesla notified the Agency that it certified those Cybercab vehicles as compliant with all applicable Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS). Tesla also notified the Agency that it plans to gradually expand commercial deployment of the Cybercab to include additional vehicles and locations.”
It also went on to state that the Cybercab lacks traditional automotive controls, which is a groundbreaking move. The process is entirely new to the NHTSA, which gives the agency some leverage to put Tesla’s launch under a microscope:
“The vehicles lack permanently attached, conventional manual controls, such as a brake pedal, gas pedal, steering wheel, and mirrors. NHTSA is opening this AQ to examine the process and technical data on which Tesla relied when certifying the Cybercab and related issues. Among other things, NHTSA will consider the extent to which Tesla’s certification depended on determinations that certain FMVSS are inapplicable to the Cybercab.”
Tesla has added 45 Cybercab units to its fleet of Robotaxi-enabled cars in Austin, according to public documents the company submitted to the State of Texas over the past week. Enabling this level of self-driving is something Tesla has worked toward for many years, and now that it is finally here, it seems more than reasonable that regulatory agencies will have some questions.
Many outlets might try to frame this as a negative, but it is truly an agency looking to gain more information about groundbreaking tech that Tesla has been developing for years.
In an effort to keep riders, pedestrians, and property safe, any and all data accumulated from these first days, weeks, and months of rides will likely be shared with the NHTSA to enable broader rollout strategies across the United States and more in the future.
Tesla Robotaxi will be a 24/7 service: here’s when
Tesla Full Self-Driving will now overtake manual driving to avoid disaster
