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Americans aren’t sure if they’re ready for self-driving cars
As Tesla gets ready to unveil its new product on October 17 which many believe will be related to some form of Autopilot hardware update, we ask the question Are Americans really ready for self-driving cars? The answer really depends on who you’re asking. Four recent polls conducted by four different organizations received wildly different results when gauging whether the general population is ready to experience autonomous driving technology.
In April, a University of Michigan poll found less than 16% of respondents were willing to ride in a self-driving car. 46% said they didn’t want any self-driving features on their own cars. Another 39% told the U of M pollsters they only want some but not all autonomous driving features. 90% reported they want the car they are riding in to have a steering wheel and pedals regardless of what level of autonomy it features.
Kelly Blue Book released results from its recent national study which polled 2,200 people between the ages of 12 and 64 to see if they’re ready to embrace advancements in self-driving technology. 80% said humans should always have the ability to take over active control of their cars while 64% reported they feel the need to be in control of their vehicle at all times. Another finding reported by the Philadelphia Inquirer said 60% of poll respondent said they know little to nothing about self-driving cars.
These results caught the attention of the Consumer Technology Association (CTA) and prompted the group to conduct its own poll. When 2,001 people were asked about their opinion of self-driving cars, 70% told CTA they were ready to test drive a self-driving car. Almost as many said they were interested in replacing their current ride with a car that drives itself.
How can such contrary results be explained? Perhaps a more accurate picture of people’s attitudes comes from a survey conducted face to face by the Texas A&M Transportation Institute. It included both drivers and non-drivers over a wide range of ages. 36% said they were enthusiastic about self-driving cars while 18% said they had no intention of ever setting foot in one.
“My thinking on that is that as people learn more, that will sway them one way or the other,” said Johanna Zmud, a TTI research scientist who co-authored the study. “My personal opinion is that [enthusiasm is] probably going to get larger as people come to understand the benefits of the technology.”
That last statement may help explain why different surveys have such different results. It’s all in what questions are asked and how they are presented. Even experts have difficulty explaining the distinctions between the various levels of autonomy. The odds are that people taking an online survey might have an imperfect understanding of the questions they are being asked.
This may be the most important finding of all. According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, the CTA survey found 82% of respondents liked the idea that self driving cars could reduce injuries and deaths from drunk driving, drug use, or road rage.
One thing everyone can agree on is that awareness of self-driving technology is on the rise and the person most responsible for that is likely Tesla CEO Elon Musk. His single minded pursuit of systems that allow cars to drive themselves has made headlines ever since Autopilot was activated a year ago. Musk says one day self-driving cars will be as common as automatic elevators. That’s the kind of headline that gets people’s attention.
Tesla is about to make parking in busy parking lots at businesses and other points of interest less stressful than ever by allowing drivers more control over where they park and how, CEO Elon Musk confirmed on X.
Tesla has been working to improve the parking performance of vehicles utilizing the Full Self-Driving suite, but now it is looking to add more customization, allowing drivers to choose the specific space they park in, but also potentially the orientation the car pulls into the spot:
It’s coming soon
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 21, 2026
Musk has reiterated on X twice over the past several weeks that Tesla is working to make things with the FSD suite based more on the driver’s specific preferences and behaviors that were seen in past drives.
Essentially, it sounds like if you tend to park away from a business to avoid other vehicles, Tesla FSD will soon recognize that preference of yours and start parking further away as well. Additionally, the prospect of assigned parking spaces has been something many owners have voiced concerns about.
Living in a community with assigned parking spaces makes using FSD incredibly difficult as it will rarely park in the correct spot when there are so many to choose from. This is also pertinent in work settings where there are sometimes assigned parking spaces.
The updates to Tesla’s Full Self-Driving suite in terms of listening to driver preferences with parking are also extending to routing. Tesla announced yesterday that with the release of its 2026 Summer Update, it was adding Automatic Navigation and Preferred Routes:
Tesla reveals 2026 Summer Update with crazy fixes to Nav and more
Tesla has always maintained the idea that any human input is bad input, and that, ideally, Tesla Full Self-Driving will always make the right decision. Of course, this is all in theory, but the issue is that so many of Tesla’s interventions have come because it does something that is not necessarily wrong, but perhaps not what the driver would prefer.
Taking these preferences into account will help Tesla alleviate some of the potentially unnecessary interventions that drivers perform.
Tesla is starting to prepare for the launch of the Optimus robot in its smartphone app, new coding strings show. Elon Musk has referred to Optimus as what will be the greatest-selling product of any kind of all time, and now, Tesla is getting ready for its launch.
Tesla’s smartphone app had several first-time mentions of the Optimus program, according to Tesla App Updates, who intially reported on the appearance. Here’s what they found:
A Dedicated “Robot” Phone Key Authentication
Tesla is working on a Bluetooth Low Energy, or BLE, authentication that is specifically for robots. This does not only apply to Optimus, though, as Robotaxi, which is Tesla’s autonomous ride-hailing platform, might also identify vehicles within the fleet as robots as well.
Tesla shows rapid teardown of Model S and X lines, paving the way for Optimus at Fremont
Essentially, pairing your phone as a key to anything Tesla identifies as a robot to a “whitelist” of authorized devices. Optimus, Robotaxi, or other products that fall into this category will only respond if the device trying to communicate with it is authorized.
This is a great security feature that will eliminate at least face-value and low-level threats.
Home Data Collection and System Alerts
This appears to be somewhat of a neural network for Optimus within your house. There will be a dedicated screen that asks for consent to collect both video and spatial data while Optimus performs in-home tasks. Everything from vacuuming, washing dishes, dusting, and other activities will be tracked.
There will also be a comprehensive alert system that will track everything from low battery to mechanical issues.
Other Changes
Most of the changes tracked in this particular app update are related to Tesla’s 2026 Summer Update, and include things such as image assets for new features, a preview of the new custom wraps feature, and other unique features.
You can check out our coverage on what is included with the 2026 Summer Update here:
Tesla reveals 2026 Summer Update with crazy fixes to Nav and more
Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) will report its earnings for the second quarter of 2026 this evening after market close, and investors and analysts are waiting anxiously to see what the company will report for the second three-month span of the year.
Analysts have already put out their expectations from a financial standpoint for the company’s second quarter, but what’s unknown is what Tesla plans to discuss during the call.
Financial Expectations
Wall Street consensus expectations put Tesla’s Earnings Per Share (EPS) at $0.53, while revenues are expected to come in around $26.4 billion.
This would compare to an EPS of $0.39 and $22.19 billion compared to Tesla’s Q2 2025. Last quarter, EPS came in at $0.41 on $22.387 billion of revenue. Additionally in Q1, Tesla beat analyst expectations, but shares dropped over 3 percent the following trading day.
What We Expect
In terms of discussions, Tesla earnings are pretty sporadic and depend on a handful of things, including current events, investor questions, and more.
Tesla uses a platform called Say to field questions from investors and analysts. These questions are what will be used during the call. Here are the top 5 from the Retail side and top 3 from the Institutional side:
Retail:
“Tesla has missed short-term guidance on robotaxi 3 earnings reports in a row, from 50% coverage of USA by end of 2025 to most recently 7 new cities in 1H26. What is keeping Tesla back from accomplishing these short term goals that they’ve set for themselves?”
“What are the main constraints to expanding robotaxi operations faster, and how do you see that lining up with Cybercab production?”
“What’s the current status of Optimus Gen 3 production ramp, initial deployment in factories, and external sales timeline/volume for 2027? What tasks can we expect the Optimus to perform by end of 2027?”
“To reward long-term Tesla retail shareholders for their loyalty, can you commit to achieving at least half of the goals outlined in your 2025 compensation plan before considering any offers to acquire or merge Tesla?”
“Why has growth of robotaxi vehicles stalled? When will we see cybercab start customer rides?”
Institutional
“Previously, you’ve said Tesla would lead the R&D while SpaceX would lead production for Terafab. Can you provide an update on how that division of responsibilities is evolving, and any additional clarity on the expected capital contributions from Tesla and SpaceX?”
“For autonomous driving, Tesla’s fleet created a huge data advantage by collecting billions of real-world miles. That advantage doesn’t yet exist for Optimus. How should we think about data availability and its impact on Optimus development?”
“Why is it necessary to limit robotaxi operations within specific zones within cities to start? Will every city have to be rolled out this way?”
Tesla will report earnings for Q2 this evening with the Shareholder Deck at 4 p.m. ET, with the call starting around 5:30 p.m. ET.
Tesla is about to make parking in busy lots less stressful than ever
Tesla starts preparing for Optimus in its smartphone app
