Elon Musk suggested using robotaxis to test his autonomous technology in the country, and Chinese officials welcomed the idea, the report said
May 8, 2024 at 8:37 am
- Tesla CEO Elon Musk suggested the introduction of robotaxis in China to officials during a recent trip to the country
- Musk suggested the program would be a good way to test “Full Self-Driving” software before it is installed in passenger vehicles
- According to the same report, Chinese government officials have not given official approval for FSD in Tesla passenger vehicles, contradicting a previous story
Tesla has confirmed that it will unveil its first robot taxi in August, and China appears to be a strong candidate for a fleet of self-driving Tesla taxis. CEO Elon Musk reportedly proposed the idea of sending a fleet of robot taxis onto China’s roads to test “Full Self-Driving” autonomous technology before offering it in customer cars.
During his recent visit to China, Musk suggested testing Tesla’s FSD system on public roads China Daily The newspaper and Chinese officials seemed more than open to the idea. According to Wednesday’s report, officials told the Tesla boss that the Chinese government “welcomes Tesla to conduct some robotaxi tests in the country,” adding that they hope Tesla can “set a good example.”
Related: Tesla RoboTaxi debuts August 8th
The story also casts shade on an earlier report suggesting that Elon Musk had received full government approval to roll out FSD technology at the meeting. China Daily says Tesla is still waiting for approval to collect and transmit the data needed by its cars’ autonomous systems and that Musk did not discuss the matter in detail during the visit.
But Tesla has also made progress in other areas during Musk’s journey, they say Reuters, including gaining approval to allow Model 3 and Model Y electric vehicles into parts of China previously blocked due to data security concerns. The free roaming access was unlocked after one of the country’s leading automotive associations found that Tesla’s cars complied with data protection regulations.
Last month, Elon Musk announced the launch of the company’s long-awaited driverless taxi with a simple tweet on presented.”
Almost eight years have passed since Musk laid out his vision of an autonomous future in “Master Plan, Part Deux.” In it, he suggested that autonomous car owners could make money by renting out their electric vehicles for rides, and that Tesla itself would operate fleets of robotaxis in places where demand for cars exceeds supply.