A report shared over the weekend claims that the transition team for President-elect Donald Trump is looking to create a federal framework for self-driving vehicles—and to make the sector a top priority in the upcoming term.
Trump’s transition team is looking to create federal rules for the rollout of autonomous vehicles, according to people familiar with the matter in a report from Bloomberg on Sunday. The news comes as Tesla and others are developing and deploying autonomous vehicles, and as Elon Musk has officially been named a co-leader of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) for the Trump administration.
The sources also said that autonomy laws would be a major priority for the U.S. Department of Transportation after past efforts to increase the number of available permits for self-driving vehicles have been thwarted. According to additional people familiar with the matter who spoke under the condition of anonymity, the Trump team is also actively looking to find policy leaders to help develop the guidelines.
Currently, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) lets manufacturers deploy as many as 2,500 self-driving vehicles per year under a granted exemption, though attempts to increase allowed units to 100,000 have been unsuccessful. Self-driving vehicles without a steering wheel or accelerator pedals—such as Tesla’s recently unveiled Cybercab—aren’t currently permitted to be deployed en masse, but many think that such a move from Trump could accelerate the deployment of the technology.
Tesla, Waymo, and others developing self-driving vehicles
Currently, Tesla owners can purchase and use the company’s Supervised Full Self-Driving (FSD) to access semi-autonomous driving, though drivers are expected to be attentive and prepared to retake control of the vehicle at any moment. Tesla also unveiled its two-seat Cybercab last month, expected to be based on FSD and to enter production in 2026.
Below you can see our first ride in the Cybercab from the We, Robot unveiling event.
🎥: Our FULL first ride in the @Tesla Cybercab pic.twitter.com/6gR7OgKRCz— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) October 11, 2024
-
While Tesla doesn’t currently operate a paid ride-hailing service like the Alphabet-owned Waymo, or others working toward this model, the company has teased an app based on an FSD ride-hailing service in the past. Additionally, many within the Tesla community claim that FSD will be more scalable than its competitors, due in part to its training of an AI neural network using millions of clips of real-time driving footage from FSD Supervised users.
Other companies such as Amazon-owned Zoox, General Motors-run (GM-run) Cruise, and still many others have also deployed driverless ride-hailing services to varying degrees of success. While California has been one of a few states where self-driving services have been able to start deployment in limited quantities, autonomous driving has also come under fire from regulators and authorities following a few cases of accidents and traffic violations.
Nonetheless, the development of a federal framework for autonomous vehicles could affect how this happens on a national level—and it will likely come to the benefit of Musk and Tesla, especially given the CEO’s closeness with Trump.
Tesla’s next step of dominance comes from Trump EV tax credit policy: Wedbush
Elon Musk and Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency
Musk will lead Trump’s newly created DOGE division in tandem with Vivek Ramaswamy, with the department aiming to “dismantle government bureaucracy” and cut down on government spending. The Tesla CEO initially endorsed Trump in July during his presidential campaign, later forming the political action committee (PAC) America PAC in support of the now-President-elect.
In addition to the financial support, Musk was a vocal backer of Trump’s campaign at rallies and in online media appearances, saying last month that Trump “must win to preserve the Constitution and democracy.” Many have also debated whether Trump’s removal of the federal $7,500 electric vehicle (EV) tax credit would be bad for Tesla and other EV makers, though Musk has said that it will likely only benefit Tesla.
The recent support for Trump also follows an ongoing set of feuds Musk has had with President Joe Biden during his presidency, as was sparked by Tesla not being invited to the administration’s EV summit, and by Biden claiming that GM had been the leader in EV deployment. Musk said in July that Biden is “utterly controlled” by the United Automotive Workers (UAW), following multiple criticisms of the union in the past.
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.
-
Former Tesla executive warns of delays to European ADAS regulations
Elon Musk has updated his timeline for when humans will walk on Mars and for when ships will simply get there.
The objective of getting to Mars has been one of Musk’s biggest goals since becoming a serial entrepreneur and realizing that time on Earth is limited. Musk has said several times he hopes to die on Mars, and not by impact.
Musk now believes that people will be on Mars in “roughly 5 to 7 years.” He said that a Mars lander will get there “a few years sooner.”
People on Mars in roughly 5 to 7 years.
Mars lander a few years sooner.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 29, 2026
The response from Musk comes after NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said that SpaceX’s biggest priority is the Moon and not Mars. Because of this, Isaacman conceded that he believes nuclear power and propulsion investments will provide “potentially the pathway with the fewest miracles required to put four people on Mars in the next 10 to 15 years.”
Of course, this is what NASA can do through taxpayer funding and nuclear investments, he added.
Musk’s grand ambitions are much more optimistic than most, and it is certainly a double-edged sword. This is not the first time timelines for Mars have been somewhat lofty, especially to those normal thinkers like you and me, not super geniuses like Musk.
In fact, the SpaceX and Tesla frontman has said on at least a dozen occasions that we could be on Mars in the coming years. Musk said 2020 would be the big year as early as 2009. In 2020, he was “highly confident” of a landing in 2026, and had even said 2024 in a best-case scenario.
The point is, the range has varied, and it’s anyone’s guess when we’ll get there. This latest adjustment to the timeline is typical of Musk, and while the Moon has seemingly taken priority over Mars, it is still worth mentioning that the ultimate goal is to make life multiplanetary, and it starts potentially with the Red Planet.
SpaceX (NASDAQ: SPCX) got an absolutely crazy price target rating from Raymond James after the company experienced a tough first few weeks following its Initial Public Offering (IPO).
Despite the tumultuous start, SpaceX has plenty of believers, and the company’s massively successful Starship launch last Friday, its 13th test flight of the massive rocket, went so smoothly that Raymond James analysts pushed its price target on the company to roughly 7 times its current trading level.
SpaceX Starship just nailed something it’s never done before
The firm officially put a “Strong Buy” rating and an $800 price target on the stock. It currently trades at around $113. Its all-time high is $225.64, reaching this trading level shortly after shares first went public.
Raymond James’ price target is tied to the firm’s confidence after Starship’s 13th test flight. Analysts at the firm said it was an incremental step that reduces engineering risks, citing the widely successful heat shield test that CEO Elon Musk recently detailed, the smooth deployment of Starlink V3 satellites, and a successful in-space engine relight.
SpaceX also managed to see Starship splash down safely in the Indian Ocean, while the Super Heavy Booster fell down to the Gulf of America with no incidents.
It is interesting to see these launches have such a tremendous impact on the stock and what investors think of it. After SpaceX initially delayed the Starship launch last week, shares fell tremendously. Most probably did not realize that the stand-down is a standard practice, especially if everything is not perfect.
The mission was initially aborted due to an issue with Raptor engines. This was resolved, and Starship launched last Friday after another delay on Thursday, which was caused by weather.
Now that analysts have seen what SpaceX launches are capable of and how impressive the feat is, firms are adjusting their price targets accordingly, making it known that they have high expectations for the space exploration company.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk has responded to reports that Volvo is officially discontinuing the LiDAR sensor on two of its cars.
Volvo announced that it would officially scrap LiDAR systems on its EX90 and ES90 vehicles in various markets. In Norway, owners will get a €1,800 compensation for features that will never arrive due to this decision. There will be no option to remove the unit from vehicles, either.
The issue stems from Volvo’s supplier, Luminar, and its bankruptcy filing. Luminar will no longer be able to supply LiDAR units to Volvo for the EX90 and ES90, effectively axing any use the unit has on vehicles. Volvo will phase out the data collection processes via the LiDAR system, and it will not be utilized whatsoever.
Musk saw the story on X and responded, stating:
“I did try to warn them. Humans drive using neural nets and optical sensors. Same is true for robot cars.”
I did try to warn them.
Humans drive using neural nets and optical sensors. Same is true for robot cars.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 29, 2026
Musk has been publicly vocal about his disdain for LiDAR systems, once calling them “a fool’s errand,” as he has consistently kept the outlook that they are not needed for effective self-driving.
The typical example used as evidence for this by Musk is humans themselves: made with only eyes and memories, humans are capable of navigating a car by using what they can see and what they’ve personally experienced on the road.
Elon Musk argues lidar and radar make self driving cars more dangerous
“Same is true for robot cars,” Musk says, as Teslas have eight exterior cameras that help see everything surrounding the vehicle, and a neural network that analyzes behavior and tendencies with every mile driven.
Tesla is a vision-only self-driving company that ditched sensors and radar several years ago in favor of cameras. Behind this effort, the company has established a reputation for having one of the most robust self-driving platforms in the world.
Musk’s big bet with Tesla on its self-driving program’s strategy has widely paid off. Other companies continue to utilize things like LiDAR, radar, and sensors for effective self-driving, but Tesla has shown that there is more than one way to give consumers a strong and accurate driver assistance suite.
The real question is: who will be the first company to take Musk’s advice and attempt a self-driving platform based on cameras only, or even license FSD for themselves?
Elon Musk updates the SpaceX timeline for Mars
SpaceX gets an absolutely crazy price target after rough IPO
