Autonomous driving: Tesla lets selected buyers pre-order robotaxis

Washington. Elon Musk's electric car manufacturer Tesla is letting some selected customers in the USA pre-order its vehicles, developed as robotaxi without steering wheels and pedals, for private use. The price for a Cybercab is estimated at $29,990 (currently around 27,000 euros). In addition, a monthly subscription fee of $299 is required for autonomous operation. The delivery date is December. At first it was not clear how many cars would go into private ownership.

Tesla is thus fulfilling an earlier promise. However, company boss Musk said a few weeks ago that the majority of the cybercabs would be on the move in Tesla's in-house robotaxi fleet.

There are also further restrictions for the few buyers. Autonomous driving will only be available in the areas where Tesla's robotaxi service is offered, wrote the responsible manager Ashok Elluswamy on Platform The group also expressly emphasizes that only private use is permitted.

Musk had announced that Tesla's future would lie in the production of humanoid robots and autonomous vehicles. Musk wants to use only cameras for autonomous vehicles. Competitors such as Google's sister company Waymo, on the other hand, also rely on laser radars that scan the vehicle's surroundings even in poor visibility.

Some experts and rivals criticize that autonomous operation using only cameras as sensors is not reliable enough. Waymo has also announced that it plans to bring its own technology for autonomous driving into private cars over time.

Tesla also took issue with the US traffic regulator NHTSA over the Cybercab. In the USA, some physical controls such as a brake pedal are generally mandatory. With an exemption from NHTSA, manufacturers can put up to 2,500 vehicles on the road without a steering wheel or pedals. Tesla did not request such permission, but stated that the cybercabs met safety requirements. The authority asked the company to explain how this could be.

Musk recently announced that production of the Cybertruck electric pickup truck would be phased out in the middle of next year - according to him, also in order to have more capacity for the Cybercabs. The Cybertruck with its futuristic-looking, angular stainless steel body was once announced with a price starting at around $40,000. It came onto the market years late and cost $82,490 in the cheapest version.