Tesla stock jumps 10% as Musk celebrates a 'successful' robotaxi launch in Austin, Texas

Tesla's Model Y robotaxi hit the streets this weekend, causing Tesla's stock to rise by 10% on Monday. The company launched its self-driving rides in Austin, Texas, on Sunday, allowing a select group of invited riders to try the service.

The invited guests included Tesla fans, supporters, and shareholders, many of whom earn money by sharing Tesla-related content on social media platforms like X (formerly Twitter) and YouTube. CEO Elon Musk announced on X that passengers were charged a flat fee of $4.20 per ride.

Musk congratulated his teams who worked hard on the AI software and chips used in the robotaxi. He mentioned that this launch was the result of ten years of effort and that both teams were built from scratch within Tesla. One passenger shared on X that they took 11 rides without any problems, and Musk reposted several positive experiences from riders.

However, some drivers and researchers noted that the robotaxis occasionally broke traffic rules. For example, a Tesla Model Y was seen briefly driving the wrong way on a street, and another robotaxi had to brake suddenly because of stationary police cars in its path.

Musk has been promising a fleet of robotaxis to investors, especially as competition grows from companies like Waymo and Chinese firms such as Baidu's Apollo Go and Pony.ai. Waymo has been quite successful, offering over 250,000 rides per week and reaching more than 10 million trips last month, while Apollo Go has surpassed 11 million trips.

Musk aims to have "hundreds of thousands, if not over a million" self-driving cars on U.S. roads by the end of next year. He initially announced the Austin launch in May, with plans for future services in Los Angeles and San Francisco.

Before the launch, some Texas lawmakers and public safety advocates urged Tesla to postpone the debut due to concerns. Currently, Tesla has not released the testing systems, called FSD Unsupervised, to the general public. They sell new electric vehicles with partial automation features known as standard Autopilot and premium FSD Supervised systems, which include navigation and lane-keeping functions. These systems have been linked to some accidents, including fatalities.