Reuters: Tesla robo-taxis drive into oncoming lane and drop people off in the middle of the road
The first public testing of Tesla's robo-taxi in Austin, Texas, revealed numerous driving errors during the first few days, Reuters reports.
Videos posted by test participants showed cars pulling into the oncoming lane, braking suddenly for no reason, stopping at intersections, or dropping off passengers in the middle of the road.
Reuters was able to confirm at least 11 videos of Tesla robotaxi problems.
None of the situations led to an accident, but safety experts have already called what they saw disturbing.
"I didn't expect so many videos of impaired driving on the first day," said Professor Philip Koopman of Carnegie Mellon University.
Tesla has not commented on the situation. The city authorities said they are aware of all potentially dangerous incidents involving the company and are working with police to ensure safe interactions with robo-taxis.
Tesla is using Model Y electric cars with new software for its robotaxis. For now, there are supervising engineers in the cabin who can intervene in case of danger.
The service is currently available only to a limited group of users and operates in a small area of Austin. Elon Musk previously said that millions of Teslas will operate fully autonomously next year.
- Last October, Tesla introduced the Cybercab and Robovan – the first driverless vehicles with a futuristic design, without a steering wheel or pedals.
- On June 23, 2025, Tesla began testing its own robotaxi service in Austin.