Tesla CEO Elon Musk has shared a fresh timeline for the expansion of the company’s autonomous robotaxi service, stating that Tesla’s fully self-driving vehicles could become widespread across the United States by the end of 2026.
Speaking virtually at the Samson International Smart Mobility Summit in Tel Aviv, Israel, Musk revealed that Tesla already has vehicles operating without passengers or safety monitors in limited geofenced areas across Dallas, Houston, and Austin, Texas.
“We already have some vehicles operating with no people inside and no safety monitors in 3 cities in Texas and probably will be widespread in the U.S. by end of this year,” Musk said during the event.
Tesla’s current robotaxi operations remain limited in scale, but the company continues testing its Unsupervised Full Self-Driving technology as part of its broader autonomous mobility ambitions.
Earlier timelines shared during Tesla’s April investor call suggested expansion into “probably a dozen states or more later this year.” However, Musk has historically faced criticism for ambitious rollout schedules tied to Tesla’s major projects.
Over the past decade, Musk has repeatedly predicted the arrival of fully self-driving vehicles, while several Tesla products, including the updated Roadster and affordable EV models, have experienced delays. Tesla also recently confirmed it has started mass production of its electric Semi trucks after years of postponements.
During the conference, Musk reiterated his belief that autonomous driving will eventually dominate transportation.
“10 years from now probably 90% of all distance driven will be driven by the AI in a self-driving car,” he said. “It’ll be quite a niche thing in 10 years to actually be driving your own car. The car will drive you.”
Tesla’s modified Cybercabs have also reportedly been spotted testing in cities including Miami, San Francisco, and Oklahoma City, though safety drivers were still present in those vehicles. Production of Cybercabs began earlier this year, with manufacturing ramping up recently.
Musk also emphasized Tesla’s focus on safety, stating that autonomous systems could significantly reduce accidents caused by human error.
“At this point the path to cars driving an order of magnitude safer than humans is very clear,” he said.
Beyond autonomous vehicles, Musk hinted that humanoid robots could become common in the future and also signaled that a SpaceX IPO could happen “pretty soon” amid growing speculation around the company’s public listing plans.
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