Elon Musk proposed to launch Tesla Robotaxis in China, reports said
By Sumaiya | Published | No Comments
- Tesla CEO Elon Musk had earlier canceled a planned visit to India to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi, citing Tesla’s heavy liabilities.
Tesla plans to test its advanced driver-assistance package in China alongside the introduction of its Robotaxis in the country. Tesla CEO Elon Musk is said to have made the proposal during his recent visit to China after delaying his visit to India. Musk’s proposal to launch robotaxis in China was received positively by authorities, Reuters cited Chinese media reports. In April, Tesla announced that it will unveil the Robotaxis on August 8 this year as the US-based EV maker faces weak sales and stiff competition from Chinese EVs.
According to reports, Chinese officials responded to Tesla’s offer by saying that the country ‘welcomes Tesla to conduct some robotaxis tests in the country’. Officials also cited that they hope Tesla can ‘set a good example’. However, the challenge for Tesla will be to get approval for the data Tesla cars need for its fully self-driving (FSD) features. China is against foreign car manufacturers collecting data on Chinese customers and has not yet approved the use of FSD.
Approval to use FSD will be key to Tesla’s plans to launch robotaxis in China. Musk met Chinese Premier Li Qiang when he visited Beijing last month. According to reports, Tesla wants to test robotaxis in Shanghai where the EV maker’s largest gigafactory outside the United States is located. China is also Tesla’s second largest market outside of its home country.
Also Read – Tesla vs BYD: Which EV giant will reign supreme in India?
Robotaxis is expected to be Tesla’s own fleet of self-driving cabs that will enable its customers with the choice of owning it or using it as part of a cab fleet together. “Tesla will be a combination of Airbnb and Uber. At any time, they can get the car back to them like Airbnb for the car. They can decide if they want the car to be used only by friends and family or only by five-star users or by anyone,” Musk said during an April 23 announcement about Tesla’s Robotaxis project. In theory, Tesla plans to use robotaxis as a mode of making money for customers, even if they don’t use them.
Also Read: Tesla’s China-made EV sales fall 18% in April amid challenges from BYD and others
The Robotaxis project could be a game-changer for Tesla as most other self-driving electric taxi projects have failed to take off. Robotaxis has proposed an EV that would not have a steering wheel or pedals, but would be powered by Tesla’s Advanced FSD. Tesla’s robotaxis ambitions have previously put the project on hold to launch a more affordable Model 2 electric car. However, the project cost of Robotaxis is expected to be very high. The question remains, if Tesla will be able to launch Robotaxis without compromising its funding.
Date of first publication: 08 May 2024, 09:41 AM IST
| Denial of responsibility! Thelocalreport.in is an automatic aggregator around the global media. All the content are available free on Internet. We have just arranged it in one platform for educational purpose only. In each content, the hyperlink to the primary source is specified. All trademarks belong to their rightful owners, all materials to their authors. If you are the owner of the content and do not want us to publish your materials on our website, please contact us.The content will be deleted within 24 hours. |
Latest posts
