Tesla launches robo-taxi rides in Austin without a human safety driver

Tesla is offering riders robo-taxi rides in Austin without a human safety driver in the front seat.

CEO Elon Musk “Just started driving a Tesla Robotaxi in Austin without a safety monitor in the car. Congrats to the Tesla AI team!” he posted Thursday on X, his social media platform.

He then made a hiring pitch for engineers interested in a “real-world AI solution,” which he says would “most likely lead to artificial general intelligence,” to join Tesla’s AI team.

The automaker launched a robotaxi in Texas City last June In limited deployment with a safety worker in the front passenger seat. Tesla initially offered those first rides to influencers and carefully selected customers. In December, Tesla has begun testing its robotaxi in Austin Not having a safe driver in the front seat – a precaution in case the car needs someone to take over.

Not all of Austin’s Tesla fleet will be completely driverless. Per Tesla’s AI leadership Ashok Alwasami: “Starting with a small number of unattended vehicles mixed with the broader robotaxi fleet equipped with safety monitoring devices, the proportion will increase over time.”

It’s not clear if the rides are free or if Tesla charges a fare. Some Tesla competitors, such as Zoox and Waymo, did not immediately charge for driverless rides upon initial rollout.

TechCrunch attempted to reach out to Tesla for clarification.