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Waymo, Uber launch driverless ride-hailing in Austin
The commercial robotaxi industry is heating up.
As the emerging commercial robotaxi space grows with Tesla and others set to start deploying self-driving ride-hailing services, Waymo, the robotaxi firm owned by Google parent company Alphabet, has officially launched driverless taxis in Texas, with the help of Uber.
As of Tuesday, those in Austin can officially take a driverless Waymo robotaxi using the Uber app, as detailed in a press release from the ride-hailing company. The launch comes as Tesla is expected to debut Unsupervised Full Self-Driving (FSD) services in Austin later this year, and after it was found to have applied for a permit to operate ride-hailing vehicles in California.
To access the Waymo robotaxis, users must opt in for the service on the Uber app at no additional cost. When awaiting rides, riders will have the option to accept the driverless Waymo robotaxi or to switch to a non-self-driving vehicle instead.
Additionally, riders will be able to use the Uber app to unlock the vehicle, open the trunk, and activate the trip, and the ride-hailing company also says it’s providing 24/7 customer support in case of any issues. The area of operation will allow riders to travel across 37 square miles of Austin, from Hyde Park to Downtown to Montopolis, and Uber also says the company plans to expand the service area in the future.
The launch also comes ahead of the South by Southwest (SXSW) music festival in Austin this weekend, which is expected to bring in bands and music enthusiasts from all over the world.
- Credit: Uber
- Credit: Uber
READ MORE ON ROBOTAXIS, TESLA’S FSD:
- Tesla is going in-house for robotaxi platform, says one competitor
- Tesla China owners share first impressions of FSD-style ‘City Autopilot’
- Tesla used this clever workaround to train FSD for China’s roads
- Tesla FSD’s rollout in Mexico is a bigger deal than it seems
- Cruise layoffs begin as GM winds down robotaxi business
- Waymo to test self-driving vehicles in another country in 2025
- Waymo study analyzes collisions with vulnerable road users
Waymo currently operates paid, self-driving ride-hails via an in-house platform through the Waymo One app in Los Angeles and around San Francisco, California, as well as in Phoenix, Arizona. As part of the announcement, Uber also says that the two companies will be partnering to launch robotaxi services in Atlanta, Georgia next.
During Tesla’s Q4 earnings call in January, CEO Elon Musk said that Tesla plans to launch its Unsupervised FSD system as a paid service in Austin in June. Tesla also operates a Gigafactory in Austin, where it builds the Model Y and the Cybertruck, and Musk has said launching in the city would let the company “dip its toe in the water” of commercial robotaxis with safety in mind.
In October, Musk also said that Tesla had been testing internal ride-hails for employees in the Bay Area, California, adding that users could already request a ride and be dropped off anywhere in the Bay. Last week, it was also widely reported that Tesla had in November applied for a “transportation charter-party carrier permit” from the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), which is the agency that helps regulate the state’s autonomous vehicles.
Tesla also launched its two-seat, steering wheel-less Cybercab in October during a Southern California event dubbed “We, Robot,” and you can see our coverage from the event below.
🎥: Our FULL first ride in the @Tesla Cybercab pic.twitter.com/6gR7OgKRCz — TESLARATI (@Teslarati) October 11, 2024
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Tesla mobile app tracker reports first lines referencing robotaxi service
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Tesla China exports 50,644 vehicles in January, up sharply YoY
The figure also places Tesla China second among new energy vehicle exporters for the month, behind BYD.
Tesla China exported 50,644 vehicles in January, as per data released by the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA).
This marks a notable increase both year-on-year and month-on-month for the American EV maker’s Giga Shanghai-built Model 3 and Model Y. The figure also places Tesla China second among new energy vehicle exporters for the month, behind BYD.
The CPCA’s national passenger car market analysis report indicated that total New Energy Vehicle exports reached 286,000 units in January, up 103.6% from a year earlier. Battery electric vehicles accounted for 65% of those exports.
Within that total, Tesla China shipped 50,644 vehicles overseas. By comparison, exports of Giga Shanghai-built Model 3 and Model Y units totaled 29,535 units in January last year and just 3,328 units in December.
This suggests that Tesla China’s January 2026 exports were roughly 1.7 times higher than the same month a year ago and more than 15 times higher than December’s level, as noted in a TechWeb report.
BYD still led the January 2026 export rankings with 96,859 new energy passenger vehicles shipped overseas, though it should be noted that the automaker operates at least nine major production facilities in China, far outnumering Tesla. Overall, BYD’s factories in China have a domestic production capacity for up to 5.82 million units annually as of 2024.
Tesla China followed in second place, ahead of Geely, Chery, Leapmotor, SAIC Motor, and SAIC-GM-Wuling, each of which exported significant volumes during the month. Overall, new energy vehicles accounted for nearly half of China’s total passenger vehicle exports in January, hinting at strong overseas demand for electric cars produced in the country.
China remains one of Tesla China’s most important markets. Despite mostly competing with just two vehicles, both of which are premium priced, Tesla China is still proving quite competitive in the domestic electric vehicle market.
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Tesla adds a new feature to Navigation in preparation for a new vehicle
After CEO Elon Musk announced earlier this week that the Semi’s mass production processes were scheduled for later this year, the company has been making various preparations as it nears manufacturing.
Tesla has added a new feature to its Navigation and Supercharger Map in preparation for a new vehicle to hit the road: the Semi.
After CEO Elon Musk announced earlier this week that the Semi’s mass production processes were scheduled for later this year, the company has been making various preparations as it nears manufacturing.
Elon Musk confirms Tesla Semi will enter high-volume production this year
One of those changes has been the newly-released information regarding trim levels, as well as reports that Tesla has started to reach out to customers regarding pricing information for those trims.
Now, Tesla has made an additional bit of information available to the public in the form of locations of Megachargers, the infrastructure that will be responsible for charging the Semi and other all-electric Class 8 vehicles that hit the road.
Tesla made the announcement on the social media platform X:
We put Semi Megachargers on the map
→ https://t.co/Jb6p7OPXMi pic.twitter.com/stwYwtDVSB
— Tesla Semi (@tesla_semi) February 10, 2026
Although it is a minor development, it is a major indication that Tesla is preparing for the Semi to head toward mass production, something the company has been hinting at for several years.
Nevertheless, this, along with the other information that was released this week, points toward a significant stride in Tesla’s progress in the Semi project.
Now that the company has also worked toward completion of the dedicated manufacturing plant in Sparks, Nevada, there are more signs than ever that the vehicle is finally ready to be built and delivered to customers outside of the pilot program that has been in operation for several years.
For now, the Megachargers are going to be situated on the West Coast, with a heavy emphasis on routes like I-5 and I-10. This strategy prioritizes major highways and logistics hubs where freight traffic is heaviest, ensuring coverage for both cross-country and regional hauls.
California and Texas are slated to have the most initially, with 17 and 19 sites, respectively. As the program continues to grow, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Washington, New York, and Nevada will have Megacharger locations as well.
For now, the Megachargers are available in Lathrop, California, and Sparks, Nevada, both of which have ties to Tesla. The former is the location of the Megafactory, and Sparks is where both the Tesla Gigafactory and Semifactory are located.
Elon Musk
Tesla stock gets latest synopsis from Jim Cramer: ‘It’s actually a robotics company’
“Turns out it’s actually a robotics and Cybercab company, and I want to buy, buy, buy. Yes, Tesla’s the paper that turned into scissors in one session,” Cramer said.
Tesla stock (NASDAQ: TSLA) got its latest synopsis from Wall Street analyst Jim Cramer, who finally realized something that many fans of the company have known all along: it’s not a car company. Instead, it’s a robotics company.
In a recent note that was released after Tesla reported Earnings in late January, Cramer seemed to recognize that the underwhelming financials and overall performance of the automotive division were not representative of the current state of affairs.
Instead, we’re seeing a company transition itself away from its early identity, essentially evolving like a caterpillar into a butterfly.
The narrative of the Earnings Call was simple: We’re not a car company, at least not from a birds-eye view. We’re an AI and Robotics company, and we are transitioning to this quicker than most people realize.
Tesla stock gets another analysis from Jim Cramer, and investors will like it
Tesla’s Q4 Earnings Call featured plenty of analysis from CEO Elon Musk and others, and some of the more minor details of the call were even indicative of a company that is moving toward AI instead of its cars. For example, the Model S and Model X will be no more after Q2, as Musk said that they serve relatively no purpose for the future.
Instead, Tesla is shifting its focus to the vehicles catered for autonomy and its Robotaxi and self-driving efforts.
Cramer recognizes this:
“…we got results from Tesla, which actually beat numbers, but nobody cares about the numbers here, as electric vehicles are the past. And according to CEO Elon Musk, the future of this company comes down to Cybercabs and humanoid robots. Stock fell more than 3% the next day. That may be because their capital expenditures budget was higher than expected, or maybe people wanted more details from the new businesses. At this point, I think Musk acolytes might be more excited about SpaceX, which is planning to come public later this year.”
He continued, highlighting the company’s true transition away from vehicles to its Cybercab, Optimus, and AI ambitions:
“I know it’s hard to believe how quickly this market can change its attitude. Last night, I heard a disastrous car company speak. Turns out it’s actually a robotics and Cybercab company, and I want to buy, buy, buy. Yes, Tesla’s the paper that turned into scissors in one session. I didn’t like it as a car company. Boy, I love it as a Cybercab and humanoid robot juggernaut. Call me a buyer and give me five robots while I’m at it.”
Cramer’s narrative seems to fit that of the most bullish Tesla investors. Anyone who is labeled a “permabull” has been echoing a similar sentiment over the past several years: Tesla is not a car company any longer.
Instead, the true focus is on the future and the potential that AI and Robotics bring to the company. It is truly difficult to put Tesla shares in the same group as companies like Ford, General Motors, and others.
Tesla shares are down less than half a percent at the time of publishing, trading at $423.69.