Tesla's robotaxi is displayed at an unveiling event in Los Angeles, California, on October 10, in this still image taken from a video. (Tesla / Reuters via CNN Newsource)
Share
New York -
Tesla CEO Elon Musk unveiled on Thursday his vision of a “a fun, exciting future,” an “age of abundance” full of his company’s self-driving cars without steering wheels, parking lots turned into parks and robots that will walk among the population – that he once again promised would be available within a few years.
Whether he can live up to these promises remains to be seen.
Those plans, and the revelation of the designs for his robotaxis, came at a glitzy event in California, full of the kind of hype that has built Tesla a dedicated fan base for its electric vehicles. The event featured models of the robotaxi as well as a Robovan, a driverless vehicle designed to carry a larger group of people or items.
The designs were heavy on a metallic, shiny sci-fi aesthetic of the future. Musk himself even referenced the classic science fiction movie “Blade Runner,” although he said he wanted his version of the coming years to be cheerier than that dystopian noir film.
Musk is famous for promising near-term targets that take years or more to reach. He had predicted five years ago that his fleet of robotaxis were only a year away. During his presentation at the Warner Bros. studio lot late Thursday, even he admitted: “I tend to be a little optimistic with time frames.”
The event unveiling these products, which was livestreamed to millions of viewers on his social media platform X, began 53 minutes late.
But the delay seemed to matter little to the in-person crowd waiting forthe chance to ride in the 50 self-driving vehicles that were cruising around the studio lot. They continued to cheer Musk throughout his relatively short 20-minute presentation.
Tesla has long offered what it calls Full Self-Driving or FSD, currently priced at US$8,000, as an option on its cars. But despite its name, Tesla says drivers need to continue to sit in the driver’s seat, ready to take over control of the vehicle, even when in FSD mode.
Musk said Thursday that Teslas with FSD would be able to operate wherever state regulators would allow without human intervention, predicting that would occur in California and Texas by next year. And he also unveiled the Cybercab, a vehicle without steering wheel or accelerator or brake pedals which is specifically designed to carry passengers without a driver present, which he said should be in production by 2026.
“It’ll be like sitting in a comfortable little lounge,” he said. “Yeah, it’s going to be awesome.”
He said the Robocab, unlike other electric vehicles, would have no plug but would be charged by driving over a charging plate. And he also showed a larger vehicle that he said could carry up to 20 passengers or goods, which he called a “Robovan,” although he gave no timeframe for the introduction of that vehicle.
Musk said that in addition to Tesla selling rides in its own fleet of self-driving robotaxis, the robotaxis would lower the cost of ownership for Tesla buyers because they’ll be able to rent their cars out for rides when not driving themselves by using Tesla’s service to arrange the rides.
The planned robotaxi service would not only compete with services from Uber and Lyft that use human drivers but with other driverless services now being tested by companies like Google’s Waymo. In fact, those other driverless robotaxi services are already well ahead of Tesla’s planned offering, said tech journalist and CNN contributor Kara Swisher, who called the Tesla robovan design “a lovely toaster on wheels.”
“I ride the Waymo (service) every time I go into San Francisco for a long time now,” Swisher told CNN late Thursday after the event. “They’ve driven millions of miles. Elon has just been talking about it. I would like to see him deploy something on the road. I’m very excited about autonomous vehicles. But he’s been promising them forever while others have delivered.”
“This is typical of him,” she said. “He makes a giant announcement, and then you see nothing. He’s done amazing things, and I think that’s part of this. But in this case, there is stuff on the road right now that’s working by Google and by Amazon and others.”
'Overly optimistic'
Musk has insisted that the company’s data shows that the current version of FSD that requires a driver to supervise the ride is already safer than cars driven by humans. But others who have tested that feature question whether that is true. One independent testing service, AMCI Testing, found that drivers needed to take control every 13 miles on average.
This is certainly not the first time that Musk has laid out ambitious time frames for his plans for self-driving cars. In a July call with investors, Musk said he expected to have “unsupervised (driving) possibly by the end of this year,” adding “I would be shocked if we cannot do it next year.”
But he also conceded, “obviously my predictions on this have been overly optimistic in the past.”
“I’m the boy who cried FSD. But I think we’ll be better than humans by the end of this year,” he said in a call with investors in July 2023, before adding: “I’ve been wrong in the past. I may be wrong this time.”
And even some analysts who believe that Tesla will eventually come up with the technology needed to have driverless vehicles carrying passengers believe that achievement is at least several years into the future.
“We’re looking at disengagements at 3 per cent of miles driven,” said Gene Munster, managing partner at Deepwater Asset Management, about the number of times that a human driver needs to take control, in an interview with CNN earlier this week.
“While 97 per cent of the way there sounds close, it’s not even close. It has to be well above 99 per cent. And to go from 95 or 97 per cent to 99 per cent is really hard. And then there’s the question of how many 9’s the regulators will want to see. Is it 99.9 per cent, 99.999 per cent?” he added.
“I think it’ll take two years to get the technology right,” Munster said. “And two to three more years to get the needed regulatory approval.”
As for Musk’s promise that the Cybercab would be available within two years, Munster pointed out that the Cybertruck pickup took about 48 months from reveal to production, and some other vehicles, including an electric semi truck, have gone more than six years since their reveal and are still not in production.
“Looking at the more recent history of product announcements and measuring the time it took to ramp production should remind investors that patience is a virtue,” he said.
Canada's ambassador to the United States — and co-lead of the federal government's Team Canada war room — says U.S. president-elect Donald Trump has a different understanding of the bilateral relationship than he did during his first term in the White House.
Donald Trump has said he wouldn’t be a dictator — 'except for Day 1.' According to his own statements, he's got a lot to do on that first day in the White House.
Nova Scotia's New Democratic Party says a candidate criticized by the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs for "troubling" and "damaging" social media posts is no longer running for the party in the Nov. 26 general election.
A Vancouver designer is making waves in the architectural world with an outdoor modular building created to address the city’s unrelenting housing crisis.
Doom spending, or the practice of spending money to soothe fears about broader issues like politics or the economy, shows up everywhere from YouTube and TikTok videos to Reddit to personal finance discussions and data in surveys.
Shannon Davidson was let go from her executive role at a marketing firm last year after a merger led to cuts. She knew she wasn't done with her career yet, but finding her next workplace in her mid-50s was a daunting prospect.
Canada could be an important consensus builder at this year's international climate negotiations, Environment and Climate Change Minister Steven Guilbeault said, while downplaying concerns that Donald Trump's presidential election victory could hamper the talks.
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh has thrown his weight behind a campaign fighting for better work rights for Kal Tire employees, joining a picket line of workers in Burnaby Saturday morning.
Nova Scotia's New Democratic Party says a candidate criticized by the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs for "troubling" and "damaging" social media posts is no longer running for the party in the Nov. 26 general election.
Brian Avery was three years old when he and his parents packed their belongings into a boat and pulled away from Deer Harbour, N.L., leaving behind their home, their way of life and centuries of family history.
On Thursday morning, Dave Penny officially ended a suggested hundred-day isolation period that followed his diagnosis and stem cell treatment for non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma. On Thursday night, Penny returned to a stage at a downtown St. John's bar, regaling a small crowd with songs and stories with a distinctive Newfoundland flair.
Donald Trump has said he wouldn’t be a dictator — 'except for Day 1.' According to his own statements, he's got a lot to do on that first day in the White House.
Thousands of Spaniards marched in the eastern city of Valencia on Saturday to demand the resignation of the regional president in charge of the emergency response to last week's catastrophic floods that left more than 200 dead and others missing.
A rare letter signed by three of the U.S. Founding Fathers of the United States is going on sale, and is expected to fetch up to US$1 million when it goes under the hammer next week.\
A soldier for Yemen's exiled government opened fire on Saudi troops as they exercised in eastern Yemen, killing two of them and wounding another in a rare insider attack during the kingdom's nearly decade-long war there, officials said Saturday.
King Charles III led the nation Sunday in a two-minute silence in remembrance of fallen service personnel in central London as the Princess of Wales looked on, a further sign the royal family is slowly returning to normal at the end of a year in which two of the most popular royals were sidelined by cancer.
A children's book written by British celebrity chef Jamie Oliver has been withdrawn from sale after it was criticised for causing offense to First Nation Australians.
Canada's ambassador to the United States — and co-lead of the federal government's Team Canada war room — says U.S. president-elect Donald Trump has a different understanding of the bilateral relationship than he did during his first term in the White House.
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh has thrown his weight behind a campaign fighting for better work rights for Kal Tire employees, joining a picket line of workers in Burnaby Saturday morning.
The Public Service Alliance of Canada says the government held a briefing with unions on Thursday to discuss the 'Refocusing Government Spending Initiative." PSAC says, "without prior consultation, the government unilaterally announced their plans to cut costs across the federal public service."
Just five more minutes of exercise doesn’t sound so bad, right? Especially when such a small amount may improve your blood pressure, according to a new study.
In 1916, Harold Wrong plucked a flower from the fields of Somme, France and tucked it into a letter he mailed home to Toronto. For decades, the type of flower sent remained a mystery.
On Thursday morning, Dave Penny officially ended a suggested hundred-day isolation period that followed his diagnosis and stem cell treatment for non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma. On Thursday night, Penny returned to a stage at a downtown St. John's bar, regaling a small crowd with songs and stories with a distinctive Newfoundland flair.
The first 'Saturday Night Live' since Donald Trump's election victory began with the most somber of tones as a group of plainly dressed cast members, primarily women and minorities, described their new reality.
Kate Winslet shared an anecdote about an encounter she had with someone from her star-making blockbuster film 'Titanic' while producing her new film 'Lee.'
Shannon Davidson was let go from her executive role at a marketing firm last year after a merger led to cuts. She knew she wasn't done with her career yet, but finding her next workplace in her mid-50s was a daunting prospect.
Contract negotiations resume today in Vancouver in a labour dispute that has paralyzed container cargo shipping at British Columbia's ports since Monday.
Televisions that measure 97 inches (and more) diagonally across – a.k.a. XXL TVs – are becoming a huge hit as the cost of giant screens sinks sharply, and viewers look to replace the screens they bought during the peak of the pandemic a few years ago.
Doom spending, or the practice of spending money to soothe fears about broader issues like politics or the economy, shows up everywhere from YouTube and TikTok videos to Reddit to personal finance discussions and data in surveys.
A Vancouver designer is making waves in the architectural world with an outdoor modular building created to address the city’s unrelenting housing crisis.
A rare letter signed by three of the U.S. Founding Fathers of the United States is going on sale, and is expected to fetch up to US$1 million when it goes under the hammer next week.\
Two suspects accused of selling stolen cars while employed at a legitimate car dealership in Toronto are now facing a combined 176 charges, police say.
A congestion crisis, a traffic nightmare, or unrelenting gridlock -- whatever you call it, most agree that Toronto has a congestion problem. To alleviate some of the gridlock, the Ontario government has announced it plans to remove bike lanes from three major roadways.
A young family from Codroy Valley, N.L., is happy to be on land and resting with their newborn daughter, Miley, after an overwhelming, yet exciting experience at sea.
A Vancouver artist whose streetside singing led to a chance encounter with one of the world's biggest musicians is encouraging aspiring performers to try their hand at busking.
A Vancouver designer is making waves in the architectural world with an outdoor modular building created to address the city’s unrelenting housing crisis.
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh has thrown his weight behind a campaign fighting for better work rights for Kal Tire employees, joining a picket line of workers in Burnaby Saturday morning.
On Saturday the City of Calgary held the first of three open houses seeking public input regarding the the intersection and roadways of Sarcee Trail and Bow Trail S.W.
A 60-year-old driver from Ottawa has been charged with impaired driving after being seen driving "erratically" on Highway 417 West in the early hours of Sunday morning, according to the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP).
It's a century-old tradition that's carried on year after year with pride – we wear a poppy to honour our nation's veterans. But to retired lieutenant-colonel Henry F. Hall it's so much more.
A battle is brewing between the city and people who live in Montreal’s Notre-Dame-de-Grâce neighbourhood after it tried to shut off access to a popular wooded area.
An Alberta municipality says it wants to tell ratepayers how much of their taxes is being spent on policing costs, but Municipal Affairs is taking issue with its disclosure.
Nova Scotia's New Democratic Party says a candidate criticized by the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs for "troubling" and "damaging" social media posts is no longer running for the party in the Nov. 26 general election.
The countdown to the CFL Western Final is on – and fans of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and Saskatchewan Roughriders were gearing up for the big game Saturday afternoon.
The Saskatchewan Roughriders extended their Grey Cup drought to 11 years after losing 38-22 to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in the CFL’s Western Final on Saturday.
The final round of ballots from Saskatchewan’s provincial election were tallied on Saturday, and a race that was previously too close to call has officially been declared.
With University Stadium packed to capacity and an electric atmosphere driving the players, the Golden Hawks delivered an impressive performance, defeating the powerhouse Mustangs and securing their first Yates Cup title since 2016.
The Saskatchewan Roughriders extended their Grey Cup drought to 11 years after losing 38-22 to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in the CFL’s Western Final on Saturday.
The Regina Rams claimed the Evan Hardy Cup after a hard fought battle against the Saskatoon Huskies 19-14 on Saturday in the first all Saskatchewan U-Sports western conference final since 2002.
Journalist, broadcaster, and author Andrew Lawton has won the nomination to run as Member of Parliament for the Conservative Party of Canada in the new riding of Elgin—St. Thomas—London South.
With University Stadium packed to capacity and an electric atmosphere driving the players, the Golden Hawks delivered an impressive performance, defeating the powerhouse Mustangs and securing their first Yates Cup title since 2016.
A former Barrie landlord says she been scammed by a woman recently charged by provincial police with posing as a nurse after allegedly falsifying her credentials to work in long-term care homes.
Multiple managing partners of Collingwood’s Supportive Rapid Re-Housing Program (SRRP) announced that they will welcome their first residents in the coming weeks.
Actor Tony Todd, known for his haunting portrayal of a killer in the horror film “Candyman” and roles in many other films and television shows, has died, his longtime manager confirmed. He was 69.
Contract negotiations resume today in Vancouver in a labour dispute that has paralyzed container cargo shipping at British Columbia's ports since Monday.
Environment and Climate Change Canada has issued a special weather statement for Metro Vancouver, Howe Sound and parts of the Fraser Valley and Sunshine Coast as another storm approaches.
The emergency department at South Okanagan General Hospital in Oliver, B.C., will be closed for 31 hours this weekend, the second such closure in a week and the third since the start of November.
Police in Kamloops, B.C., are reminding parents and guardians to check their children's Halloween candy after receiving a report of a mother finding a razor blade in one of her daughter's treats.
More than two years after Alannah Brown and Douglas Barker were found dead north of Penticton, police are asking for help identifying a vehicle they believe was associated with the crime.
The Lethbridge Hurricanes broke open a close game with three goals in the first two minutes of the third period as they defeated the Warriors 7-3 in a game played Friday night in Moose Jaw.
Mayors of the five largest cities in northern Ontario met in North Bay the last two days to discuss a range of critical issues impacting their cities and the region.
Residents in the Sault expressed concerns ranging from vandalism to privacy invasions during recent consultations on the city's plan to install automated speed enforcement cameras.
On Thursday morning, Dave Penny officially ended a suggested hundred-day isolation period that followed his diagnosis and stem cell treatment for non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma. On Thursday night, Penny returned to a stage at a downtown St. John's bar, regaling a small crowd with songs and stories with a distinctive Newfoundland flair.
A Memorial University scientist says the mysterious white blobs washing up on Newfoundland beaches are actually gobs of plastic -- and they need to be cleaned up.
School staff are being struck more often, students are fighting more frequently, and police are increasingly being called to school grounds, according to data compiled and released this week by the Newfoundland and Labrador Teachers' Association.