Elon Musk said on May 18 that Tesla expects to expand fully autonomous vehicles without human safety monitors across the United States before the end of 2026. The company already runs unsupervised Robotaxi rides in Austin, Dallas and Houston after removing the in-car safety operator more than six months after the service first launched in June.
Musk predicted that 90% of all distance driven will be handled by self-driving AI within a decade. He admitted scale-up has lagged earlier targets — he originally promised coverage for half the US population by the end of 2025 — but said unsupervised Full Self-Driving will be "widespread in the US by year-end."
The push comes amid fresh safety scrutiny: Tesla recently recalled nearly 219,000 vehicles for delayed rearview camera images, while Waymo recalled roughly 3,800 robotaxis over flood-road risks. Riders also reported long wait times and patchy availability in the current Texas service area.