Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA)CEO Elon Musk said that Robotaxi service now operates around the clock wherever it is available. The update marks another expansion in the autonomous ride-hailing program’s operating hours.
Late Wednesday, the official Robotaxi account on X announced, “Robotaxi now runs 24/7…Every city we’re available in.”
Musk added that a “Robotaxi works 168 hours a week," highlighting the company’s shift away from overnight service pauses.
Tesla’s Robotaxi vehicles’ service hours gradually expanded, including an Oct. 29 schedule listing availability from 6 a.m. to 2 a.m. Thirteen days after that schedule was posted, the overnight gap had disappeared, allowing riders to request trips at any time within the designated service areas.
Tesla Races Waymo Amid Deployment Challenges
The latest availability expansion comes as Tesla continues scaling its autonomous ride-hailing presence in Texas and competing with Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) (NASDAQ:GOOGL)-owned Waymo. According to state registration data cited in November, Tesla Robotaxi LLC had 1,244 registered vehicles in Texas, compared with Waymo’s 1,259.
Anduril Industries co-founder Palmer Luckey backed Tesla’s Robotaxi business model, arguing that autonomous vehicles could capture a significant share of the $150 billion-plus ride-hailing market by eliminating driver costs.
Tesla’s Robotaxi expansion also comes with challenges. The company is producing its two-seat Cybercab robotaxis faster than it can deploy them, creating a gap between manufacturing capacity and fleet expansion. Vice President of Vehicle Engineering Lars Moravy said the production line was outpacing deployments, forcing Tesla to limit operations despite its manufacturing capacity.
Price Action: Year-to-date, Tesla Stock plunged 13.09%, as per Benzinga Pro. The stock dipped about 0.45% to 389.06 premarket on Thursday.
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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