The Tesla Robotaxi app has opened to the general public, with CEO Elon Musk predicting safety drivers will be removed by year-end.
Tesla stock rose slightly Thursday.
Tesla Robotaxi App Opens To Public
The Tesla Robotaxi account said on X late Wednesday that the Robotaxi app is open for the general public to join the watchlist for when the ride-hailing service expands access in Austin, Texas, and the San Francisco Bay Area.
The "robotaxi" service has been limited to Tesla influencers and other invitees.
Some people on social media claimed to have already gotten through the waitlist and taken a ride.
Elon Musk: 'Safety Driver' Gone By Year-End
Musk posted on his social site X that the Tesla robotaxi "safety driver is just there for the first few months to be extra safe. Should be no safety driver by end of year."
Musk's post was in reply to someone using the ride-hailing service in San Francisco. It's not clear how Tesla could legally remove the safety driver in California by year-end. California regulators won't permit driverless vehicles without extensive testing and reporting to prove they are autonomous.
Meanwhile in Austin, Tesla robotaxis have begun driving on highways, but apparently with safety drivers now. Late Wednesday, the official Tesla Robotaxi account stated on Elon Musk's X account that "Safety monitors are only in the driver's seat for trips that involve highway driving, as a self-imposed cautious first step toward expanding to highways."
It's still unclear if any Austin rides are currently running with safety monitors in the passenger seat.
A new Texas law went into effect on Sept. 1 that steps up autonomous driving oversight.
That law requires vehicles to have a safety driver unless they qualify as Level 4 or 5 self-driving, requiring no human oversight at all. But Tesla Full Self-Driving is still a Level 2 system.
Musk has been predicting Tesla self-driving "this year" or "next year" for a decade.
Google parent Alphabet is operating Waymo self-driving vehicles in Austin, Phoenix, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Atlanta, with several more cities coming in the next year.
Tesla Stock
Tesla stock gained 1.3% to 338.53, putting a little more distance from the 21-day and 200-day after regaining those levels Wednesday. A move above Wednesday's intraday high of 343.33 would offer an aggressive entry into TSLA stock.
Investors also could use the Aug. 27 short-term high of 355.39 as an early entry. The traditional consolidation buy point is 367.71.
TSLA stock is showing higher lows and generally higher highs in recent weeks, a positive trend.
However, the EV giant has flashed aggressive entries three times in the current base, only to quickly fall back.
The relative strength line for Tesla stock has been moving sideways in recent weeks, reflecting Tesla stock's trend of generally moving with the market.
Google stock edged up 0.7% Thursday to a fresh all-time high. Shares jumped 9.1% to 230.66 Wednesday thanks to relatively light antitrust penalties.
Please follow Ed Carson on Threads at @edcarson1971 and X/Twitter at @IBD_ECarson for stock market updates and more.
