Within a single day, Elon Musk became wealthier by $19 billion just after the release of Tesla Robotaxi in Austin, contributing to a new leap in Tesla, as the stocks rose by 8%, eliminating most of the losses the company had incurred so far this year. This small-scale deployment allowed users to call up rides on a $4.20 fare with a safety-conscious Tesla employee in the front passenger seat, this was sufficient enough to set off an investor joy and drove Tesla stock prices way up.
The implication of this launch matters far more than the personal wealth of Musk. Musk has been building up the reputation of Tesla not only as an electric car company but as one of the leaders in artificial intelligence and robotics over the years. The launch of the Robotaxi is also a significant step toward that same vision, which implies that Tesla aims to transform city transportation and tap new revenue opportunities. More optimistic analysts, including those at Wedbush, calculate the eventual payback through autonomous technology which they assume might bring in trillions of dollars to Tesla.
However, it similarly reveals how much Tesla aims high and how much its technology has yet to achieve. Robotaxi service is not autonomous. Safety drivers are still required, and the service area is limited and closed. Real-life self-driving cars on the streets on a scale of millions of vehicles is a big step to the scene of a dozen supervised vehicles.
Moving ahead, the launch of Robotaxi can be seen as a daring undertaking of Tesla and will give us an indication of what is in the store. Tesla is well past its trendy-Elon innovation stage; nonetheless, the market seems to believe that the company will be able to deliver on the promises in the vision of mass-market Robotaxis, which ultimately will require years of research and development to execute. The enthusiasm is genuine, and so are the challenges that lie ahead.
