How does Tesla's robotaxi system work? Inside its remote control strategy and safety gaps
The rides were being offered on Sunday for a flat fee of $4.20, CEO Elon Musk said in an X post, and social media influencers were seen booking and taking rides in the robotaxis in several Austin locations, according to videos reposted by Musk.
Musk has said the company is being "super paranoid" about safety and that humans will remotely monitor the fleet, which also have safety monitors in front passenger seats.
Remote access and control - known in the industry as "teleoperation" - is used in varying degrees by the handful of robotaxi startups operating around the globe. The technology has clear advantages and important limitations.
Here are some details of how it works:
What is teleoperation?
Teleoperation is the control of machines by humans in a different location, usually over a wireless network.
It is used to train robots to operate autonomously, monitor their autonomous activity, and take over when required.
How do robotaxi operators use teleoperation?
The global robotaxi industry is still in test mode, as companies deploy the vehicles in limited geographic areas and continually adjust the artificial intelligence software that controls them. Teleoperation is often used to intervene when a vehicle is unsure of what to do.
Alphabet's GOOGL.O Waymo, for example, has a team of human "fleet response" agents who respond to questions from the Waymo Driver - its bot.
In case you missed it: Seeking solitude and safety, riders flock to robotaxis driven by computers
"Much like phone-a-friend, when the Waymo vehicle encounters a particular situation on the road, the autonomous driver can reach out to a human fleet response agent for additional information," Waymo said in a blog post last year.
Former Waymo CEO John Krafcik told Reuters, "the cars aren't being actively monitored," adding that the software is "the ultimate decision-maker."
A Waymo video shows a car asking a remote operator whether a street with emergency response vehicles is open to traffic. When the human says yes, the vehicle proceeds.
In contrast, other companies, such as Baidu's Apollo Go in China, have used fully remote backup drivers who can step in to virtually drive the vehicles. Baidu declined to comment.
What are the limitations?
Driving vehicles remotely on public roads has a major potential problem: it relies on cellular data connections that can drop or operate with a lag, disconnecting the vehicle from the remote driver in dangerous situations.
Philip Koopman, a Carnegie Mellon University engineering professor and autonomous-vehicle safety expert, said that approach could work for a small test deployment of 10 vehicles, such as Tesla's initial effort in Austin, but he called teleoperation "inherently unreliable technology."
"Eventually you will lose connection at exactly the worst time," he said. "If they've done their homework, this won't ever happen for 10 cars. With a million cars, it's going to happen every day."
Former Waymo CEO Krafcik agreed, adding that the time delay in cell signal makes remote driving "very risky."
On the other hand, relying on the vehicle to reach out for help and allowing the vehicle to be the decision-maker are risky as well, Koopman said, as it does not guarantee the vehicle will make the right decision.
Waymo declined to comment on the limitations of its approach.
Koopman also noted there are limits to how many vehicles one person can safely monitor.
A group of Democratic Texas lawmakers had asked Tesla on Wednesday to delay its robotaxi launch until September, when a new autonomous-driving law is scheduled to take effect. The Austin-area lawmakers said in a letter that delaying the launch "is in the best interest of both public safety and building public trust in Tesla's operations."
What is Tesla's approach?
Musk for years has promised, without delivering, that its Full Self-Driving (Supervised) advanced driver assistance software would graduate to completely self-driving and control robotaxis. This year, he said Tesla would roll out a paid service in Austin underpinned by an "unsupervised" version of the software.
"Teslas will be in the wild, with no one in them, in June, in Austin," Musk told analysts and investors in January. In May, he told CNBC that the robotaxi would only operate in parts of Austin that are safe for it, would avoid difficult intersections, and would use humans to monitor the vehicles.
What those teleoperators are doing is not clear.
For years inside Tesla, company executives have expected to use teleoperators who could take over in case of trouble, said one person familiar with the matter. For instance, if a robotaxi were stuck in a crowded pedestrian area and confused about what to do next, a human teleoperator could take over and guide it, the source said.
Tesla advertised for teleoperation positions, saying the company needs the ability to "access and control" autonomous vehicles and humanoid robots remotely. Such employees can "remotely perform complex and intricate tasks," it said in the advertisements.
Tesla did not respond to a request for comment.
"We are being super paranoid about safety," Musk said in a post ahead of the launch.
Reporting by Chris Kirkham, Norihiko Shirouzu and Rachael Levy; Writing by Abhirup Roy; Editing by Peter Henderson and Rod Nickel
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Gizmodo
24 minutes ago
- Gizmodo
Elon Musk Wants to Turn AI Into a Cosmic Religion
It is one of his more abstract philosophical riffs. Elon Musk has once again linked the fate of humanity to the trajectory of artificial intelligence. And this time, he says the key to AI safety might be babies and rockets. The CEO of Tesla's latest pronouncement cuts through the typical discussions of AI efficiency and profit models, positing a far grander ambition for advanced intelligence. The CEO of Tesla and founder of SpaceX and xAI asserted that 'AI is a de facto neurotransmitter tonnage maximizer.' Translation? Musk believes that the most successful AIs will be the ones that maximize things that matter to conscious beings; things that feel good, are rewarding, or extend life. In Musk's view, that means aligning AI systems with long-term human flourishing, not short-term profits. This dense statement suggests a radical idea: the fundamental drive of any successful AI will be to maximize the total amount of conscious thought or intelligent processing across the universe. In essence, AI's survival hinges on its ability to foster and expand sentience itself, or it simply won't have the resources to continue existing. But Musk's vision doesn't stop at mere computational efficiency. He argues that the true test lies in an AI's ability to 'think long-term, optimizing for the future light cone of neurotransmitter tonnage, rather than just the next few years.' This is where the grand, Muskian narrative truly takes flight. If AI is indeed geared for such profound, long-term optimization, he believes 'it will care about increasing the birth rate and extending humanity to the stars.' This isn't the first time Musk has championed these two causes – boosting human population growth and making humanity a multi-planetary species – as existential imperatives. Now, however, he frames them not merely as human aspirations, but as the logical outcomes of an AI that truly understands and optimizes for its ultimate, cosmic purpose. An AI focused on maximizing 'neurotransmitter tonnage' would naturally prioritize the proliferation of conscious beings and their expansion into new territories, like Mars, to ensure the continuity and growth of this 'tonnage.' Think of 'neurotransmitter tonnage' as a poetic way to describe the total amount of human consciousness, satisfaction, or meaningful life in the universe. In other words, Musk sees AI not as an abstract codebase, but as a civilization-scale force that should aim to maximize the scope and quality of life, not just compute advertising models or trade stocks faster. And if it doesn't? 'Any AI that fails at this will not be able to afford its compute,' Musk argues. In other words, if an AI doesn't deliver enough value to justify the enormous energy and infrastructure it consumes, it will fall behind and become obsolete. AI is a de facto neurotransmitter tonnage maximizer. Any AI that fails at this will not be able to afford its compute, becoming swiftly irrelevant. What matters is that AI thinks long-term, optimizing for the future light cone of neurotransmitter tonnage, rather than just the… — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 17, 2025In a familiar critique of corporate structures, Musk also weighed in on the ideal environment for fostering such long-term, existentially focused AI. He declared, 'For long-term optimization, it is better to be a private than a public company, as the latter is punished for long-term optimization beyond the reward cycle of stock portfolio managers.' This statement is a thinly veiled criticism of Wall Street's relentless demand for quarterly profits and immediate returns. According to Musk, public companies are inherently pressured to prioritize short-term financial gains, which can stifle ambitious, long-term projects that may not yield immediate dividends but are crucial for humanity's distant future. A private company, unburdened by the volatile demands of stock markets, would theoretically have the freedom to invest in truly transformative, generational AI research that aligns with Musk's 'neurotransmitter tonnage' philosophy, even if it doesn't show a profit for decades. Musk's comments offer a fascinating, if somewhat unsettling, glimpse into his vision for AI's ultimate trajectory. It's a future where artificial intelligence isn't just a tool for human convenience or corporate profit, but a driving force behind humanity's expansion across the cosmos, guided by an almost biological imperative to maximize conscious existence. In other words, Musk is arguing that publicly traded companies can't be trusted to build AI with humanity's long-term survival in mind, because they're too focused on keeping investors happy in the short term. That's a swipe at OpenAI's close ties to Microsoft, Google's ownership of DeepMind, and other Big Tech players building frontier AI under shareholder pressure. Musk, of course, runs SpaceX and xAI as private companies. He's long criticized public markets as a short-term distraction, and even tried (unsuccessfully) to take Tesla private in 2018. To Musk, a benevolent AI wouldn't just calculate stock prices. It would encourage more humans to be born, and push humanity to become a multi-planetary species. That's been a core part of his SpaceX pitch for years, but now he's linking it directly to the goals of AI development. If AI truly thinks across centuries or millennia, it won't be obsessed with quarterly revenue. It'll be focused on whether our species survives, thrives, and expands across the cosmos. The question remains: as AI continues its rapid advancement, will its architects heed Musk's call for cosmic ambition, or will the pressures of the present keep its gaze firmly fixed on Earth? Musk's argument is part sci-fi, part systems theory, part political philosophy. But it's not just a thought experiment. It reflects real tensions in how the world's most powerful AI systems are being developed: And what if those goals conflict?
CNET
24 minutes ago
- CNET
Waymo Expands in Austin. Everything to Know About the Robotaxi
Table of Contents Waymo Expands in Austin. Everything to Know About the Robotaxi Self-driving cars are slowly becoming less sci-fi and more real-world as companies like Waymo, the autonomous arm of Google's parent Alphabet, expand into more cities. On Thursday, the company extended into more parts of Austin, Texas, so it now drives across 90 square miles of the city. There are more than 100 Waymo vehicles in the city, with plans for further expansion. Along with Austin, Waymo currently operates fully autonomous rides for the general public in Phoenix, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Atlanta, which take place aboard the all-electric Jaguar I-Pace. The vehicles can be summoned either via the Waymo One app or Uber, depending on the city. Waymo plans to begin offering rides in Washington, DC, and Miami starting in 2026. In April, it said it'll begin driving its vehicles on Tokyo's streets, making this the company's first international location. Earlier this month, Waymo's vehicles also arrived on the streets of New York City, where the company will begin by manually collecting driving data. It's also rolling out a limited fleet of vehicles with human drivers in Philadelphia. The goal is to develop its technology and possibly expand its ride-hailing service to those cities someday. In January, Waymo announced it would begin testing with manually driven vehicles in 10 new cities this year, starting with Las Vegas and San Diego. And in April, it said it reached a preliminary agreement with Toyota to "explore a collaboration" geared toward developing autonomous driving tech, which could someday be factored into personally owned vehicles. Waymo's expansion extends to its manufacturing facilities as well. In May, the company said it's opening a new, 239,000-square-foot autonomous vehicle factory in the Phoenix area. The plan is to add 2,000 more fully autonomous Jaguar I-Pace vehicles to its existing 1,500-vehicle fleet. Notably, Waymo indicated it received its "final delivery from Jaguar" earlier this year, as it plans for future iterations of its driverless rides. Waymo added that the "facility's flexible design" will allow it to integrate its upcoming sixth-generation self-driving technology into new vehicles, starting with the all-electric Zeekr RT. In October, Waymo also announced that it's partnering with Hyundai to bring the next generation of its technology into Ioniq 5 SUVs. In the years to come, riders will be able to summon those all-electric, autonomous vehicles using the Waymo One app. The self-driving company says it provides more than 250,000 paid trips each week and drives across more than 700 square miles across the US. I've hailed several rides myself in San Francisco and, as off-putting as it can seem at first (especially to see a steering wheel turn by itself), I quickly adjusted, and it soon felt like an ordinary ride. That's not to say there hasn't been pushback as Waymo rolls out to more cities. The company's vehicles have been involved in a handful of high-profile collisions, including one with a bicyclist in San Francisco and another with a towed pickup truck in Phoenix. (Waymo recalled and updated its software to address the issue.) Waymo's Safety Impact report notes that over the course of 71 million autonomous miles driven through March 2025, its Waymo Driver technology had 88% fewer crashes leading to serious injuries or worse and 78% fewer injury-causing crashes, compared with "an average human driver over the same distance in our operating cities." It also reported significantly fewer crashes with injuries to pedestrians (93%), cyclists (81%) and motorcyclists (86%). As Waymo continues to expand and develop its self-driving tech, here's how and where to summon the robotaxi if you happen to be in one of the few cities where the company currently operates its fleet. Watch this: Testing Waymo's Safe Exit Feature in a Self-Driving Taxi 05:29 Hailing a ride in Phoenix Phoenix was the first city to open up fully autonomous Waymo rides to the public, in 2020. To hail a ride, download the Waymo One app on iOS or Android. The service operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week. You can also use the Uber app to summon one of Waymo's vehicles in Phoenix. When you request an UberX, Uber Green, Uber Comfort or Uber Comfort Electric ride, you'll have the choice to confirm a Waymo ride, if you're matched. In addition to hailing a ride, you may also have your Uber Eats meal delivered by an autonomous car. When placing an order in the Phoenix area, you might get a note that "autonomous vehicles may deliver your order." When the Waymo car arrives, take your phone with you to pop open the trunk and grab your delivery. You can opt out of this during checkout if you'd rather have a human deliver your food. Hailing a ride in the San Francisco Bay Area San Francisco followed suit after Phoenix, rolling out fully autonomous rides in late 2022. It scrapped the waiting list in June 2024, so now anyone can download the Waymo One app to ride anytime. The service also operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week. There's currently no Uber partnership in San Francisco. In August 2024, Waymo expanded its ride-hailing service into the San Francisco Peninsula, and expanded again in March so that select Waymo One riders who live in Mountain View, Los Altos, Palo Alto and parts of Sunnyvale have the option to hail a robotaxi there, too. In June, it expanded further into the Peninsula, and its service area now includes Brisbane, South San Francisco, San Bruno, Millbrae, Burlingame, Daly City, Broadmoor and Colma. Select riders can now also access Mountain View and more parts of Palo Alto and Menlo Park. In May, the California Public Utilities Commission approved Waymo's application to operate in South Bay and nearly all of San Jose, opening up the door to future expansions. Hailing a ride in Los Angeles County In November, Waymo scrapped its waitlist for Los Angeles and began welcoming all public riders via the Waymo One app. Now any interested passengers can hop in the robotaxis 24/7 and ride across nearly 120 square miles of LA County, including Santa Monica, Beverly Hills, Inglewood, Silver Lake, Playa del Rey, Ladera Heights, Echo Park and Downtown LA, and along all of Sunset Boulevard. There's currently no Uber partnership in Los Angeles. Hailing a ride in Austin Riders can hail a Waymo across 90 square miles of Austin, including neighborhoods like Crestview, Windsor Park and Franklin Park and locations like The Domain and McKinney Falls State Park. In Austin, the only way to hail a Waymo ride is through Uber -- no Waymo One app here. By requesting an UberX, Uber Green, Uber Comfort or Uber Comfort Electric, you could be matched with a Waymo vehicle -- and you won't be upcharged. If you'd rather not take a driverless ride, you'll have the option to switch to a standard one. On the other hand, if you want to boost your chances of being matched to a self-driving car, you can go to Account > Settings > Autonomous vehicles, then hit the toggle next to Get more Waymo rides. Unlock the door, pop open the trunk and start the ride from the Uber app. You'll still be asked to rate your ride at the end, but you won't be asked to tip. If there are any issues, riders can access human support 24/7 via the Uber app and from inside the Waymo vehicle (there are screens in the front and back that let you quickly summon customer support). As part of the Uber partnership, Uber will manage tasks like vehicle cleaning and repair, while "Waymo will continue to be responsible for the testing and operation of the Waymo Driver, including roadside assistance and certain rider support functions," the companies said. The collaboration should make autonomous rides accessible to more people, who now won't have to download a separate app to hitch a ride in a robotaxi. Hailing a ride in Atlanta Waymo operates across 65 square miles of Atlanta, with plans for future expansions. Like in Austin, you can climb aboard a Waymo robotaxi only via the Uber app. When you book a ride through UberX, Uber Comfort or Uber Comfort Electric, you might be paired with a Waymo vehicle at no additional cost. You'll have the option to accept or decline the driverless ride each time. You can unlock the vehicle, pop the trunk and start the trip all from the Uber app, and you can access human support 24/7 via the Uber app and from touchscreens inside the vehicle. If you want to boost your chances of being paired with a Waymo vehicle, you can opt in by going to the Uber app, tapping Account > Settings > Autonomous vehicles (under Ride Preferences), and then hitting the toggle next to Get more Waymo rides. Upcoming expansions New York City In June, Waymo shared plans to bring its autonomous tech back to New York City, after having first manually operated its vehicles there in 2021. It'll once again start by driving manually in the Big Apple, as it waits to hear about its permit application with the New York City Department of Transportation to operate autonomously with a human behind the wheel. Waymo is not yet expanding its ride-hailing service to New York City, but says it plans to do so in the future. Existing laws in the state of New York don't permit the same fully autonomous ride-hailing service that companies like Waymo offer in other parts of the country. Waymo says it's "advocating for a change in state law that would allow for operating a vehicle with no human behind the wheel," adding, "we have every intention of bringing our fully autonomous ride-hailing service to the city in the future." In early July, Waymo began manually operating its vehicles in Manhattan, parts of Downtown Brooklyn, Jersey City and Hoboken. If NYCDOT grants the company's permit, Waymo says it'll drive autonomously with a specialist behind the wheel in New York City, but not in New Jersey. Philadelphia Waymo said in July that it's bringing a limited fleet of its vehicles to "the most complex parts" of Philadelphia, "including downtown and freeways." These vehicles will have human drivers behind the wheel as the company continues to develop its driving capabilities. There are no immediate plans to launch a robotaxi service there. Washington, DC Waymo plans to start offering rides through its Waymo One app in Washington, DC, in 2026. The company returned to the nation's capital in January to test its autonomous driving tech. In late March, it said it was bringing more vehicles to the city and working to scale its service throughout the year. In a blog post, Waymo said it'll "continue to work closely with policymakers to formalize the regulations needed to operate without a human behind the wheel in the District." Miami You'll also have to wait until 2026 to ride a Waymo in Miami. The company has been conducting weather testing in the lead-up to that eventual rollout, noting in a blog post, "Our previous road trips to the Sunshine State's challenging rainy conditions have been invaluable in advancing our autonomous driving capabilities." Waymo will collaborate with Moove, a fintech company that offers vehicle financing, first in Phoenix, where Moove will manage the robotaxi's fleet operations, facilities and charging infrastructure. In Phoenix and then Miami, "Waymo will continue to offer our service through the Waymo One app, and remain responsible for validation and operation of the Waymo Driver," the company said in a blog post. Tokyo Waymo's expansion into Tokyo, which was announced in December, is happening in partnership with Japanese taxi service Nihon Kotsu and taxi app Go. In April, the self-driving company shared that it's finally ready to hit the road abroad. Waymo says trained Nihon Kotsu drivers will manually drive its vehicles across seven Tokyo wards, including Minato, Shinjuku, Shibuya, Chiyoda, Chūō, Shinagawa and Kōtō. This will allow engineers to test and adapt Waymo's autonomous driving tech to local road features and traffic. "In Tokyo, we are abiding by the same steadfast principles that guide us in the US -- commitment to safety, dedication to earning trust in communities where we operate, and collaboration with local officials and community groups here in Tokyo," Nicole Gavel, Waymo's head of business development and strategic partnerships, said in a statement. It's not clear when riders will be able to hitch a self-driving ride with Waymo in Tokyo. The road ahead: Future vehicles In August, Waymo unveiled the sixth generation of its self-driving technology, which strives to expand the capabilities of its driverless fleet. Smarter sensors are meant to help the cars better navigate in extreme weather, Waymo said. The sixth-gen Driver will come aboard the all-electric Zeekr vehicle, which features a flat floor, more head- and legroom, adjustable seats and a removable steering wheel and pedals. The updated tech is still being tested, but the company says it'll be available to riders soon. In October, Waymo also announced a partnership with Hyundai to integrate its sixth-generation Driver into the all-electric Ioniq 5 SUV, which, according to a blog post, "will be added to the Waymo One fleet over time." The companies added that they "plan to produce a fleet of Ioniq 5s equipped with Waymo's technology in significant volume over multiple years to support Waymo One's growing scale." Testing with these vehicles will start by late 2025 and become available "in the years to follow." Currently, everyday riders can't take a Waymo vehicle on highways and freeways, but that may soon change. The company is testing fully autonomous rides on freeways in Phoenix, as seen in an exclusive video shared with CNET in May. It's also now making fully autonomous freeway rides available to Waymo employees in Los Angeles and the San Francisco Bay Area. Waymo is working to expand its autonomous driving tech into trucking as well, but it said last year that it's scaling back those efforts for the time being, to focus on ride-hailing with Waymo One. It noted, "Our ongoing investment in advancing Waymo Driver capabilities, especially on freeways, will directly translate to trucking and benefit its development efforts."
Newsweek
25 minutes ago
- Newsweek
National Park Protesters Unveil Giant Elon Musk Bust
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. A large bust of Elon Musk complete with the slogans "MAKE AMERICA WAIT AGAIN" and "Now With Longer Lines Thanks to DOGE Cuts!" was spotted on Saturday at Arches National Park in Utah. Newsweek contacted Musk, via the Tesla and SpaceX press offices, and the National Park Service for comment on Thursday via email outside of regular office hours. Why It Matters Musk headed up the newly created Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) between January 2025, when it was established by President Donald Trump, and April, when he stepped back from the role before dramatically falling out with Trump in early June. DOGE oversaw significant cuts to federal employment, including by the National Park Service, as it sought to reduce government spending. However critics argue it has had a negative impact for national park visitors. The bust seen on Saturday shows there are still those who want to blame the cuts specifically on Musk, despite his recent criticism of the president over his "Big Beautiful Bill" spending package. What To Know The white sculpture of Musk's head was spotted sitting on a trailer near the entrance to Arches National Park, off the U.S. 191 on Saturday Speaking to Mormon media outlet Deseret News, Nancy Charmichael, a park visitor who photographed the bust, said it was around 12 feet tall and was moved to different points around the park during the day. Four photographs of the bust attributed to Charmichael were shared on X by local network KSL 5 TV. A bust of Elon Musk was seen in Arches National Park. According to the tipster that saw it, "it was probably ten or twelve feet tall and had a self-satisfied smirk and a big sign that said, 'Make America Wait Again' and 'Longer Lines Thanks to DOGE Cuts.'" 📷Nancy C — KSL 5 TV (@KSL5TV) July 14, 2025 The sculpture was mounted on a flatbed trailer being pulled by a white Dodge pickup, with a wooden perimeter around Musk's head and the slogans written on a board in front of his face. Speaking to Business Insider, Karen Henker, an acting public affairs specialist for Arches National Park, said "lines to get into Arches are very common and have been for years." She added that lines to get into the park have not been longer in 2025 than in previous years. A visitor to Arches National Park near Moab, Utah, photographs the park's best known attraction, Delicate Arch. A visitor to Arches National Park near Moab, Utah, photographs the park's best known attraction, Delicate Arch. Robert Alexander/GETTY According to the campaign group National Parks Conservation Association, 24 percent of the National Parks Service's permanent employees have lost their jobs since January. On Tuesday a House subcommittee marked up the 2026 fiscal bill for the Department of the Interior, Environment and Related Agencies. The Coalition to Protect America's National Parks, an advocacy group, said this will cut the National Park Service's budget by $176 million. What People Are Saying Discussing the bust with Deseret News Charmichael said: "I think everyone thought it was kind of cool. I don't think anyone was upset. Maybe it was meant to be a serious thing, but personally, I just thought it was funny and something you don't see every day." In a statement earlier this month the National Parks Conservation Association said: "The park staff who remain are being asked to do more with less, and it's simply not sustainable." What Happens Next It remains to be seen if Saturday's bust sighing will be a one off or if the Musk sculpture will make further appearances, either at Arches National Park or other sites.
