Elon Musk to Unveil Tesla Robotaxi Prototype on October 10 Amidst AI and EV Challenges

Elon Musk to Unveil Tesla Robotaxi Prototype on October 10 Amidst AI and EV Challenges
Image credit: CNN

Elon Musk has announced that Tesla will reveal its purpose-built "robotaxi" prototype on October 10, after postponing the initial reveal planned for August 8. In addition to the robotaxi, Tesla will showcase "a couple of other things," though Musk did not elaborate on these additional items.

Musk confirmed the delay during Tesla’s second-quarter earnings call, attributing it to the need for redesigning certain elements of the prototype, including an "important design change to the front." This aligns with an earlier Bloomberg report regarding the postponement.

The robotaxi, along with Tesla's "unsupervised" full self-driving software, is a critical component of the company’s future. Musk has reorganized Tesla, including laying off over 10% of its global staff, to focus on developing AI-powered products and autonomy.

Despite these ambitious plans, Tesla's financial performance shows signs of strain. The company reported a $1.5 billion profit for Q2 2024, a 45% decline from the same period last year. This figure includes $890 million from regulatory credit sales but is offset by a $622 million restructuring charge. While total revenues increased by 2% year-over-year, automotive revenues dropped by 7% to $19.9 billion.

Tesla’s profitability issues follow a difficult first quarter, where profits fell by 55% year-over-year. The company now faces the possibility of selling fewer EVs in 2024 compared to 2023, a potential reversal of its growth trajectory. To mitigate this, Tesla is banking on new models like the Cybertruck and other future vehicles that might have a lower MSRP.

Musk emphasized that Tesla's long-term value hinges on autonomy, including its humanoid robot effort, Optimus, which also faced delays. Despite ongoing challenges, Musk remains optimistic about achieving unsupervised self-driving capabilities, potentially by the end of this year or in 2025.

The upcoming October 10 event will be crucial in showcasing Tesla's progress. Although details remain sparse, an illustration of a small robotaxi prototype appeared in Walter Isaacson's 2023 biography of Musk. Musk has envisioned a ride-hailing service through Tesla’s app, similar to Uber and Lyft, where Tesla owners can add their cars to a shared network once the Full Self-Driving software is sufficiently advanced—a goal that remains unfulfilled.

Years of promises around fully self-driving cars have led to legal challenges and government investigations. When asked about the timeline for offering the first unsupervised robotaxi ride, Musk cautiously predicted it might happen by the end of this year or in 2025, acknowledging his tendency towards overly optimistic projections.