Tesla Seems to Have Moved Its Robotaxi Security Screens to a Extra Sneaky Location

Tesla’s self-driving Robotaxis have been working in Austin, Texas, with a security monitor within the passenger seat, a skilled one who can intervene in case something goes fallacious with the autonomous automobile. On Thursday, CEO Elon Musk announced the monitor would not be within the automobile, which was positioned as a serious step ahead within the firm’s capabilities to function autonomously with out human intervention.

Seems, it’s not fairly that straightforward. Electrek reported that, based mostly on social media movies, it seems that Tesla hasn’t truly gotten rid of the protection monitor. As a substitute, the corporate has seemingly merely moved the particular person right into a path automobile that follows the Robotaxi throughout its journey. A number of videos present Robotaxis being tailed by Tesla autos, suggesting that Tesla’s autonomous driving will not be as superior as the corporate would really like it to seem. Tesla, it ought to be famous, hasn’t confirmed whether or not or not it’s working path vehicles. The corporate didn’t reply to a request for remark on the time of publication, nevertheless it additionally hasn’t had an working public relations division in a few years.

My first unsupervised @robotaxi experience right here in Austin! Come together with me on this 1st expertise of driving round Austin with simply me within the automobile and within the again seat!

Congrats to the @Tesla_AI group! 🤠👍 pic.twitter.com/YVJ19zp2qZ

— Joe Tegtmeyer 🚀 🤠🛸😎 (@JoeTegtmeyer) January 22, 2026

In a video uploaded by Tesla fanatic Joe Tegtmeyer, he may be heard figuring out the “chase automobile” that’s following his experience in what he identifies as his “first unsupervised Robotaxi experience.” Tegtmeyer suggests the automobile is there for “validation,” which looks as if a pleasant manner of claiming “being on scene in case something goes horribly fallacious.”

In a vacuum, there’s nothing essentially fallacious with the thought of a path automobile for security functions—although it does appear to be a really inefficient option to function when you’re attempting to supply rides at scale. But it surely’s the weaselly manner that Musk has offered this transformation that provides it such a foul style. Musk stated that the Robotaxis are driving “with no security monitor within the automobile.” That’s technically appropriate. However the data that the protection monitor remains to be concerned and ready to doubtlessly intervene in each single experience undermines the concept Tesla has achieved some new, significant stage of autonomy.

The truth that security displays are nonetheless concerned at such a granular stage suggests Tesla remains to be lightyears behind Waymo, which is at the moment working a fleet of round 2,500 vehicles and not using a human round to intervene bodily (although they do nonetheless have remote operators who can take over at any level). Tesla, in the meantime, is reportedly working about 80ish Robotaxis in total, and often solely a handful on the similar time.

Regardless of this, Musk went on stage in Davos, Switzerland, on the World Financial Discussion board and claimed that Tesla has solved autonomy. “I believe self-driving vehicles is basically a solved downside at this level,” he said earlier than claiming that Tesla’s Robotaxis might be “very widespread by the tip of this 12 months inside the U.S.” If that’s true, prepare for some main visitors jams contemplating each Tesla Robotaxi experience truly places two vehicles on the street: the one getting you to your vacation spot and the one which makes positive you don’t burst into flames.