Tesla is a heavyweight! Robotaxi debuts at press conference, Tesla dives straight into the water
China Foundation News reporter Amman
This may be a day that goes down in history!
On October 10th (Beijing time), Musk brought his Robotaxi to the United States! Musk not only personally test drove to the press conference, but also renamed Tesla Robotaxi to Cybercab.
According to Musk, Cybercab does not have a steering wheel or pedals. There are still 20 identical cars on the road at the scene. In addition, Tesla currently has a total of 50 fully autonomous vehicles.
There was a sudden small situation on site. The live broadcast originally scheduled for 10am Beijing time has been postponed. As everyone was speculating about the reason, Musk announced on social media that someone had fainted from a sudden illness and needed care, so the press conference was postponed, but he did not confirm the specific start time.
Regarding the postponement of the press conference, Tesla's Vice President of External Affairs, Tao Lin, also posted an explanation on Weibo.
Around 10:40 Beijing time, according to on-site personnel, the medical emergency seems to have ended and medical staff are evacuating.
At 10:57 Beijing time, the highly anticipated press conference finally began, and Musk arrived at the event site in Tesla's robot taxi Cybercab.
To summarize the main content of the press conference:
1. Robotaxi: Tesla has released the autonomous taxi Cybercab, a two door two seater car with no steering wheel or pedals, using induction charging and no charging port.
In addition, the Robovan, a self driving truck that can accommodate 20 people and can also be used for cargo transportation, was also unveiled at the press conference.
2. Production time: Cybercab is expected to start production in 2026 and reach mass production level before 2027. Users can experience autonomous taxis on other Tesla models in advance.
3. In terms of cost: Over time, it is expected that the operating cost of Cybercab will be around $0.2 per mile, and the price including tax may be $0.3 or $0.4 per mile. It is expected that the cost of Cybercab will be less than $30000. The travel cost of Robovan is 5 to 10 cents per mile.
4. Autonomous driving: Tesla is expected to launch fully autonomous driving (FSD) capabilities for Model 3 and Model Y in Texas and California next year.
5. Optimus robots: Significant progress has been made on the Optimus project, and in the case of large-scale production, the cost will be between $20000 and $30000.
At the event, Optimus robots performed a collective dance to showcase their flexibility, and also transformed into service personnel during the post press conference visit, providing drinks, dancing, and more for the guests on site. The entire press conference was filled with a cyber atmosphere, like a punk party.
However, after the press conference, Tesla plummeted during the current night trading session, from a rise of over 5% to a decline, and fell by over 4% at one point.
Dennis Dick, an equity trader at Triple D Trading, said, "Everything looks cool, but the timeline is unclear. As a shareholder, I am a bit disappointed about this. I think the market wants a clearer timeline, but he hasn't revealed too much specific information
In addition, Cybercab does not have a steering wheel or pedals, which would make it non compliant with federal vehicle safety laws. Cruise, a subsidiary of General Motors, had previously attempted to put its dedicated robot taxi Origin into production, but failed to obtain the necessary approval from the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration, ultimately canceling the project.
Analysts pointed out that Tesla's overnight decline reflects the market's cautious attitude towards new product releases. In the context of widespread pressure on technology stocks and fragile market psychology, investors are particularly sensitive to whether Tesla can successfully position its autonomous driving products. Although autonomous driving technology is an important component of future transportation, its commercialization and profitability still face many challenges in the short term.