Elon Musk revealed on X that Tesla will launch a robotaxi on August 8, only hours after Reuters revealed that the company is abandoning its ambitions to build an affordable electric vehicle. Musk’s order was to “go all in” on robotaxis, which was developed on the business’s small-vehicle platform, according to Reuters as well. Long-term supporters of Tesla have stated that the company will release a more reasonably priced electric vehicle (EV) in the second half of 2025; costs are anticipated to begin at $25,000. Elon Musk expressed this optimism as late as January. Following the publication of the news, the CEO of Tesla tweeted, “Reuters is lying (again).”
He didn’t clarify which part of the report was a lie, but considering he confirmed that Tesla is unveiling a robotaxi, he likely meant the news organization’s claim that the company pulled the plug on a more affordable EV. At the moment, Tesla’s cheapest vehicle is the Model 3, but its prices start at $39,000. It’ll be interesting to see how the company will make a robotaxi work with its camera-only system — it dropped radar and other sensors, which robotaxi companies like Waymo use extensively, from its driver assistance technologies a few years ago.
