Elon Musk says Robotaxi will end one form of transport
- Elon Musk has made a big statement about Tesla’s upcoming Robotaxis
- He said they would make one form of transport obsolete
- If true, it would end a history spanning over 100 years
Published on Sep 26, 2024 at 7:57 PM (UTC+4)
by Ben Thompson
Last updated on Sep 27, 2024 at 1:34 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Amelia Jean Hershman-Jones
Elon Musk has declared that the Tesla Robotaxi will make another mode of transport totally obsolete.
The Tesla CEO is known for having big ambitions and breaking boundaries.
But even for him, this is a bold aim.
He made the statement on X (another of his ventures) in response to a user’s observation.
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Elon Musk makes a big statement about Robotaxis
A claim was circulating on X that electric buses wouldn’t run in cold weather.
Elon stated that electric buses can withstand cold climates when built for them, but conceded some may not.
He went on to say: “Then the battery packs of the buses are too small.
“Teslas can operate well even above the Arctic Circle.”
He concluded: “Also, buses will not be needed when Tesla rolls out unsupervised full self-driving, as they will take people from point to point for a similar cost to a bus ticket.”
That’s a really bold statement.
Buses have been around since the 1820s, albeit pulled by horses at the time.
Motor buses have been on the scene since 1895.
That’s well over one hundred years of buses and Elon reckons his Robotaxis will render them obsolete.
Watch this space, we guess.
How much do we know about Tesla’s Robotaxis?
It’s looking likely that Tesla will launch their Robotaxi service in October.
Elon has said he expected the service to be a mix between Uber and Airbnb.
The self-driving service will likely have a minimal interior.
We expect that the Tesla Robotaxi will have a camera-based system, rather than using Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) or radar.
It will feature the latest ‘next generation’ Tesla tech, including the top battery the company has, as well as the best materials to give range, efficiency, safety, and durability.
There’ll be some elements of the current FSD (Full Self Driving) chucked in for good measure, too.
Whether or not this will be the kiss of death for buses – or indeed, normal taxis – remains to be seen.
Things go out of fashion in the world of automobiles.
On a similar note, one BMW executive believes manual gearboxes will soon be obsolete.
