TESLA'S DRIVERLESS ROBOTAXI CLAIMS CHALLENGED AS SAFETY MONITORS REAPPEAR IN CHASE CARS

A surge in Tesla’s stock price following Elon Musk’s announcement of “unsupervised” Robotaxi drives in Austin has been met with scepticism after video evidence revealed the vehicles are being shadowed by human-operated trailing cars.

On 22 January, Musk claimed on X that the company had “just started Tesla Robotaxi drives in Austin with no safety monitor in the car,” a statement that triggered a 4 per cent jump in share value and optimistic headlines across the financial press.

However, critics argue the milestone is a “game of smoke and mirrors,” as spotted Robotaxis were closely followed by black Teslas believed to be housing the very safety monitors Musk claimed to have removed.

While Musk’s statement that there is “no safety monitor in the car” is technically accurate, analysts suggest the implication of true autonomy is “misleading at best.”

Observers note that having a chase car follow an autonomous vehicle “defeats the entire purpose of autonomy” and indicates that Tesla is not yet ready to match competitors such as Waymo, whose vehicles operate genuinely alone without trailing backup.

The controversy arises as Musk once again claimed to have “solved autonomy” during the World Economic Forum in Davos, a promise he has made annually for the last six years.

Industry experts argue that the use of chase cars proves the system “isn't ready to operate without a human safety net,” suggesting the move is a marketing stunt designed to maintain Tesla’s valuation.

Critics maintain that the real objective of such announcements is to bolster the company’s market cap, as the entire valuation thesis “depends on investors believing that full autonomy is right around the corner.”

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