Tesla starts robotaxi rides in Austin with no safety monitor in the car

Tesla began offering paid robotaxi rides in Austin with no safety driver in the front seat on January 22, 2026. Musk said on X that the drives had started, but Ashok Elluswamy said only a few unsupervised vehicles were mixed into a fleet that still had monitors. A chase car was seen following some of the driverless cars.

• Unsupervised rides began in Austin on January 22, 2026
• Only a few unsupervised vehicles mixed into the broader fleet at launch
• Ratio of unsupervised cars to be increased over time, per Elluswamy