Musk Proposes Introduction of Chinese 'Robotaxi'... First Reveal in August

Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, recently proposed the launch of a 'Robotaxi' during his visit to China, according to a report by the Chinese state media China Daily on the 8th.

On the 28th of last month, Musk met with senior Chinese officials to seek approval for the release of the 'Full Self-Driving (FSD)' software in China. According to China Daily, Musk also proposed the introduction of Robotaxis alongside FSD. In response, Chinese officials welcomed Tesla conducting some Robotaxi tests in China, expressing hope that it would serve as a good example, China Daily reported.

Elon Musk Tesla CEO
Photo by Yonhap News

Last month, Musk announced on X (formerly Twitter) that the Robotaxi would be unveiled on August 8. Additionally, during a conference call following the earnings report on the 24th of last month, he referred to the Robotaxi as the 'CyberCab,' describing it as "a combination of Airbnb (lodging sharing platform) and Uber (ride-hailing platform), with Tesla directly owning and operating the vehicles."

However, FSD is still awaiting regulatory approval. Thanks to Musk's visit to China, Tesla became the first foreign company to receive a 'compliant' rating in China's data security inspection. This marks the passing of one of the key regulatory hurdles that had been blocking the launch of FSD in China. Nevertheless, to implement FSD tailored to Chinese road conditions, it is necessary to transfer data collected in China overseas for AI algorithm training, but data transfer abroad is still restricted by Chinese authorities.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.