Tesla is rolling out its robotaxis in Dallas and Houston, the electric vehicle maker said on Saturday, marking further expansion of its nascent service in the United States since its Austin, Texas, launch last year.<\/p>\n
Tesla\u2019s official robotaxi account on X announced the launch and posted two videos showing its best-selling Model Y SUVs running in the two cities with no human driver or monitor in the front seats.<\/p>\n
It posted two map images outlining service boundaries, but did not disclose further details such as fleet size or pricing.<\/p>\n
\u201cTry Tesla Robotaxi in Dallas & Houston!\u201d CEO Elon Musk said reposting the X post.<\/p>\n
Tesla\u2019s move comes as the robotaxi business has regained momentum with Alphabet\u2019s Waymo and Amazon\u2019s Zoox speeding up expansion.<\/p>\n
Expanding the robotaxi service and wider adoption of its full self-driving software, a version of which underpins the technology, is key to Tesla\u2019s growth strategy as Musk has pivoted the company\u2019s focus to artificial intelligence and robotics from EVs.<\/p>\n
Much of the company\u2019s $1.3 trillion valuation hinges on that bet.<\/p>\n
Tesla first deployed a small group of self-driving taxis in an area of Austin with human safety monitors and other restrictions. The company has since widened the service area and started removing the monitors.<\/p>\n
Last year, Tesla also started a ride-hailing service in the San Francisco Bay Area. Musk has promised to expand the robotaxi service rapidly in the U.S., but missed earlier predictions of its robotaxis operating widely in multiple U.S. metro areas by the end of 2025.<\/p>\n
(Reporting by Anusha Shah in Bengaluru and Abhirup Roy in San Francisco Editing by Nick Zieminski, Rod Nickel)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n