What's it like to take Elon Musk's Robotaxi?

This time, Elon Musk didn't stand anyone up.

On June 22, the Tesla Robotaxi, which Musk had promised time and time again, finally started picking up passengers.

On the first day of its launch, a total of 35 vehicles were in operation, all of which were Tesla Model Ys.

Specifically, passengers can download the Tesla Robotaxi App, enter their destination, and the app will generate a route and price. During the trial - operation period, each order is uniformly charged $4.2 (approximately 30 RMB).

Of course, this is just a trial operation, and there are many restrictions. Moreover, most importantly, you may not be able to book a ride because initially, only some investors and media personnel are invited to experience it first.

However, this progress is enough to make Musk, countless Tesla fans, and tech enthusiasts extremely excited. Some loyal fans have taken the Tesla Robotaxi at least 11 times to experience it in detail, contributing more than 300 RMB in revenue to Musk's Robotaxi.

This is what we call a die - hard fan.

01 How to Book a Tesla Robotaxi

Actually, there was still a slight delay.

Musk originally planned to start the trial operation at 6 a.m. on June 22 (U.S. time), but it was finally postponed to 12 p.m.

Currently, the Robotaxi service has been officially launched on Tesla's official website. The relevant rules and guidelines have been announced, and users are invited to register to get the latest news about the service launch in their areas. However, to book a ride, you still need to download the Robotaxi APP.

After downloading and registering the app, you'll see a page like this:

It will show the current operating area. The way to book a ride is the same as that of mainstream ride - hailing apps. After entering your destination, a route map will be generated.

Of course, you need to be within the available range of the Robotaxi. Currently, the service is mainly available in downtown Austin. If your location is correctly identified, you can book a ride.

If the passenger's location is outside the destination range, the APP will guide the passenger to the edge of the operating area.

After placing an order, you can see the basic information of the vehicle and the estimated arrival time. Then you need to wait at the designated place. However, if the vehicle arrives and you're not near the designated location, the order will be automatically canceled 5 minutes after the vehicle's arrival.

When the vehicle arrives, its rear lights will flash to indicate that it's a Robotaxi. Additionally, when getting in the car, you need to check if the vehicle matches the information shown in the APP, such as the license plate number.

Then open the rear door (the usage instructions of Tesla Robotaxi clearly state that passengers are prohibited from sitting in the front row), get in the vehicle, close the door, and fasten your seatbelt.

After getting in the car, there is a separate UI on the second - row display under the front - row seats. Tesla calls it the "Robotaxi Center", which will show your estimated arrival time and location. Then, long - press the "START RIDE" button on the display to start your journey.

During the journey, you can see the real - time route map on the rear - row screen. Additionally, you can adjust the air - conditioning settings, seat positions, etc. through the Robotaxi APP. You can also use entertainment functions on the rear - row screen, such as listening to music, playing videos, or even playing games.

After reaching your destination, get out of the car and close the door, and the order will automatically end. After the order ends, you can provide feedback through the Tesla Robotaxi App.

Currently, regardless of the distance of the journey, a flat fee of $4.2 is charged. Of course, you can also choose to give a tip.

However, after you click to give a tip, a page with a cyber hedgehog wearing glasses will pop up, and the words "just kidding" will be shown below. It's a bit of an Easter egg.

In addition, the official has also provided a number of precautions, including prohibiting people under 18 from using the Tesla Robotaxi alone; only allowing service animals in the vehicle; and holding passengers accountable for any damage to the vehicle's interior. These requirements are not very different from those of ordinary ride - hailing apps.

02 A Fan Took 11 Rides

The newly launched Tesla Robotaxi still has many other restrictions, and not everyone can book a ride. It's only available to the "early - bird users" invited by Tesla, which are about 20 - 30 Tesla fans, investors, and internet celebrities. A netizen mentioned in a post that 14 internet celebrities were invited.

Although there is no driver in the driver's seat, there is a safety officer in the front - passenger seat, who is responsible for performing manual emergency braking in case of an emergency. Additionally, the vehicle is equipped with a remote monitoring system, and some Tesla staff have posted pictures of the back - end monitoring work on the platform.

Ashok Elluswamy, the head of Tesla's Autopilot department, posted a photo. From the picture, it can be seen that a total of 35 vehicles are currently in operation. The real - time traffic conditions of each vehicle can be seen on the screen. They have received 112 orders, and the cumulative mileage has reached 499 miles (approximately 800 kilometers). There is also a device that looks like a steering wheel in the back - end center, which can take over the vehicle at any time.

In addition, passengers can press the Support button on the rear - row screen to communicate directly with the remote service staff and consult them about any problems.

The service hours of the Robotaxi are restricted to 6 a.m. to midnight, and the service will stop during bad weather. Tesla also reminds in its disclaimer not to use the Robotaxi in an emergency.

Finally, regarding the service area, although the trial operation is carried out in Austin, it is only available in a small area of approximately 77 square kilometers in southern Austin within a geofence. It takes about 30 minutes to complete a full - length journey.

Tesla also emphasizes that during the passenger's ride, the in - car camera and microphone are turned off by default to protect the passenger's privacy. Passengers can activate these devices themselves if needed. The microphone is mainly used to detect the sirens of emergency vehicles. Except in special emergency situations, the collected sound will not be transmitted to Tesla's servers.

After the official launch of the Robotaxi, many videos of people taking test rides appeared on the X platform. For a while, Musk was busy liking, commenting on, or reposting these experience videos.

From the videos, it seems that the vehicles can generally handle daily urban driving scenarios. For example, when turning or making a U - turn, the driving is quite smooth without obvious pauses. The vehicle will slow down and give way when encountering pedestrians or construction sites, and will also pull over to give way when an ambulance approaches.

This has led to almost all positive feedback from current passengers -

"It's like magic."

"An otherworldly experience."

"Incredibly smooth."

However, such one - sided positive reviews are expected. After all, it's not a large - scale operation yet. The road scenarios are simple and mostly routine, and the users participating in the test are all invited by Tesla.

There is also a fanatical Tesla fan who took at least 11 rides in the Tesla Robotaxi in one day. He even found time to take a Waymo self - driving car for comparison. His evaluation was that "overall, it's not as smooth as Tesla, and Waymo had a phantom braking phenomenon."

Of course, some invited passengers also encountered problems during their test rides. Someone said that when taking the Tesla Robotaxi, it failed to turn left at an intersection where it should have, and after swaying left and right, it chose to go straight.

Some invited passengers also said on the X platform that in complex scenarios, the intervention of a remote operator is still needed.

03 Will There Be Explosive Growth?

Musk should be quite satisfied with the results of the trial operation.

One hour after the official launch of the Robotaxi, Musk specifically posted a tweet on the X platform, saying that he warmly congratulated Tesla's AI software and chip design teams on the successful launch of the Robotaxi. This is the result of ten years of hard work, and Tesla built its AI chip and software teams from scratch.

Musk even went to the back - end monitoring site of the Robotaxi team to witness this moment with the team.

As for why Musk is so excited, on the one hand, he planned to launch the Robotaxi as early as ten years ago, but it was repeatedly delayed. Until today, his long - promised plan has finally come to fruition.

On the other hand, although it's just a very small - scale trial operation, it marks the beginning of explosive growth in Tesla's business.

Different from the R & D path of autonomous driving companies represented by Waymo, most of the current self - driving vehicle solutions on the market are based on adding perception hardware to mass - produced vehicles to achieve functional and safety redundancy. The cost of this redundant hardware can often reach tens of thousands or even over 100,000 RMB.

However, Tesla's Robotaxi provides a new solution. It doesn't require a lot of redundant hardware. Instead, it uses a new algorithm and can still maintain the state of a mass - produced vehicle. This means that in the near future, any Tesla vehicle produced may be easily converted into a self - driving commercial vehicle.

Just in terms of vehicle cost, it already outperforms current self - driving vehicle manufacturers. At a previous earnings conference, Musk said that Tesla's Robotaxi aims to achieve an operating cost much lower than that of Waymo. Moreover, a recent paid report from a U.S. media shows that the cost of a Waymo vehicle is seven times that of a Tesla Robotaxi.

Another important aspect is scalability.

Shortly after the launch of the Robotaxi, Tesla's AI team officially stated that "our autonomous driving approach is also scalable: Tesla's autonomous driving technology can be deployed anywhere it is approved. It doesn't require expensive specialized equipment or extensive mapping of the service area, and it really works."

Compared with competitors who modify vehicles one by one, if the mass - produced Model Y and Model 3 can directly become Robotaxis in the future, the