Elon Musk has been dropping increasingly unsubtle hints that his next big automotive unveiling is just around the corner. The centerpiece? Tesla’s much-hyped “Robotaxi” autonomous EV built from the ground up for ride-hailing.
Former GM Cruise Vice President of Products: “I think it makes perfect sense for Tesla to prioritize a purpose-built robotaxi over yet another human-driven car. The opportunity is way bigger, the competition has thinned, it accelerates their humanoid, and they seem to have something special on their hands with FSD v12.”
Robotaxi August 8th Reveal Date
In X/Twitter, Musk made the calendar date crystal clear: “8/8 and year of the Dragon.” In Chinese culture, the number 8 symbolizes prosperity and good fortune, while 2024 is the Year of the Dragon on the lunar calendar.
For those keeping score, August 8th, 2024 is shaping up to be Robotaxi Day at the cult of Tesla. It’s the day Musk finally pulls back the curtain on the automaker’s top secret autonomous EV project designed solely for driverless ride-hailing and mobility services.
Tightest Release-to-Delivery Gap Yet?
Musk seems to be gunning to shatter records with the Robotaxi unveiling-to-production timeline. While Tesla’s previous vehicles took years to transition from unveiling to full-scale manufacturing, comments from Musk and insiders suggest the Robotaxi could go from reveal to delivery in just 10 months.
That would mark Tesla’s shortest-ever release-to-delivery gap by far. The hyper-compressed timeline implies the Robotaxi platform has already undergone extensive parallel development with the company’s upcoming $25,000 mainstream EV, accelerating time-to-market.
Of course, delivering an all-new urban mobility vehicle from scratch in under a year won’t be easy. Musk acknowledged “a number of outstanding issues” remain, including redundant fail-safe systems, steer-by-wire controls, and rigorous testing of the autonomous driving smarts.
Still, after successfully accelerating the rollout of Full Self-Driving software across its current fleet, Tesla seems primed to go all-in on redefining the ride-hailing experience.
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