Tesla Cybercab Robotaxi First Ride.
Tesla boss Elon Musk has unveiled the firm's long-awaited robotaxi, the Cybercab, at the Warner Bros Studios in Burbank, California.The futuristic-looking vehicle, featuring two wing-like doors - and no pedals or steering wheel - deposited Mr Musk in front of an audience eager to hear details about a project he considers key to Tesla's next chapter.
At the event, billed "We, Robot," the multi-billionaire reiterated his view that fully self-driving vehicles will be safer than those operated by humans and could even earn owners money by being rented out for rides. However, investors have so far not shared his enthusiasm - Tesla's share price fell after markets opened in the US on Friday morning.The value of its stock was down more than eight percent, trading at around $219, at 11:45 Eastern Time (16:45 BST).
Meanwhile shares in ride-hailing rivals Uber and Lyft - which have their own autonomous ambitions - were each trading up to 10% higher. Questions are being asked about Mr Musk's prediction that production of the Cybercab would begin some time "before 2027", given his track record of failing to meet his own deadlines. "I tend to be optimistic with time frames," he quipped during the event.
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He said the Cybercab - which would compete with rivals including Alphabet-owned Waymo - would cost less than $30,000 (£23,000).However analysts have cast doubt on how realistic that plan is. "It will be extremely difficult for Tesla to offer a new vehicle at that price within that timescale," said Paul Miller, from research Forrester. "Without external subsidies, or Tesla making a loss on every vehicle, it doesn't seem plausible to launch at anything close to that price this decade," he added.
Safety concerns
Mr Musk also said he expected to see "fully autonomous unsupervised" technology available in Tesla's Model 3 and Model Y in Texas and California next year "with permission where ever regulators approve it.
"But that approval is far from guaranteed.
"It is a big chunk of metal driving on roads at high speeds, so safety concerns are big," said Samitha Samaranayake, an associate professor in engineering at Cornell University.
Tesla's self-driving ambitions rely on cameras that are cheaper than radar and Lidar (light detection and ranging) sensors that are the technology backbone of many competitors' vehicles.
By teaching its cars to drive, Tesla plans to use artificial intelligence (AI) trained by the raw data it collects from its millions of vehicles.
But the research community "is not sold on whether the Tesla style of doing things can give the safety guarantees that we would like," Mr Samaranayake said.
State of the robotaxi market
The deployment of robotaxis has encountered setbacks, with driverless cars operated by General Motors subsidiary Cruise being suspended in San Francisco after a pedestrian was knocked down.
But the sector continues to expand.
Waymo said in early October it would add the Hyundai Ioniq 5 to its robotaxi fleet after the vehicles undergo on-road testing with the company's technology.
Ride-hailing giant Uber also wants to add more autonomous vehicles to its fleet to expand on its delivery and ridesharing options for customers.
It announced a multi-year alliance with driverless car developer Cruise in August.
Chinese tech company Baidu is also reportedly looking to expand its robotaxi division, Apollo Go, beyond China - where the vehicles are active in several cities.
Source: BBC