On September 3, in Austin, Texas, Tesla held an official presentation of its long-awaited Cybercab project. On the same day, the Robotaxi service became available to the public, allowing users to hail a fully driverless two-seater vehicle devoid of a steering wheel and pedals. For now, rides are only available in select areas of the city, but this is already a historic moment: the technology that had been discussed for years has finally hit real roads.
Ashok Elluswamy, head of Tesla's AI division, confirmed that the service is open to everyone. However, there are nuances: the assignment of a specific vehicle is automatic, with no option to choose between a Cybercab and a Model Y. The system itself assesses vehicle availability and passenger flow. The company hints at implementing dynamic pricing, but specific rates remain under wraps.
Scale of launch and fleet registration
According to Texas authorities, at the time of launch, Tesla had registered 420 autonomous vehicles in the state, of which only 45 are Cybercabs directly. For comparison, the competing Waymo project has a fleet of 988 vehicles in the region. This indicates that Tesla is acting selectively, starting with a limited coverage area.
Production of the Cybercab began back in April 2026. Recall that the concept, unveiled in October 2024, impressed the industry with its gull-wing door design and the complete absence of manual controls. Elon Musk has repeatedly stated that this model will become the most mass-produced in the company's history and the foundation of a global robotaxi network. The estimated price of $30,000, previously announced, remains just a plan for now—at the recent event, no price tag for retail buyers was disclosed.
Openness to third-party operators
A surprising move was the appearance on Tesla's website of a form for companies and entrepreneurs wishing to purchase Cybercabs for commercial use. This includes both the purchase of individual vehicles and the formation of entire fleets. Among the possible areas of collaboration, the creation of infrastructure and mobile hubs is mentioned. Previously, Tesla preferred to develop its own fleet, but now a clear shift toward attracting partners for accelerated network scaling is evident. The terms of deals and management of such fleets have not yet been disclosed.
Currently, the Robotaxi service based on the Model Y operates in Austin, Dallas, Houston, as well as in Florida—Miami, Orlando, and Tampa. The launch of the Cybercab in Austin is a pilot project that will set the direction for development in the coming years.
Regulatory attention
Already the day after the launch, on September 4, the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) initiated a review of approximately 1,000 Cybercabs. The regulator intends to determine on what basis Tesla considers the model compliant with federal safety standards, given the absence of a steering wheel, pedals, and mirrors. Federal regulations limit the commercial sale of such vehicles, although they are permissible for testing without quantitative limits. In California, the company has also not yet obtained permits for the commercial operation of fully driverless vehicles.
It is worth noting that this is not Tesla's first experience in Austin: the first Robotaxi rides in the Model Y began back in June 2025, and by December the company was already testing vehicles without a safety driver in the cabin. The current Cybercab launch is a logical continuation of this strategy, but it also elevates the safety question to a new level.
My analysis: The Cybercab launch in Texas is a bold yet extremely cautious step. The limited geography and a tiny fleet of 45 vehicles indicate that Tesla is learning on the go. However, opening the doors to third-party operators is a signal that the company realizes: building a global robotaxi network alone will be extremely difficult and costly. The coming months will show how quickly the technology can scale and whether Tesla can maintain the pace under intense regulatory pressure.