Latest news with #RachaelLevy
Hindustan Times
11 hours ago
- Automotive
- Hindustan Times
Tesla's robotaxi peppered with driving mistakes in Texas tests
* HT Image Traffic problems, driving mistakes feature in Tesla's robotaxi - passenger videos * Robotaxis entered wrong lane, dropped passengers off in the middle of roads among other issues * Problems show limitations of Tesla's self-driving software - safety expert * Driverless vehicle rivals Waymo and Cruise also faced issues in their rollouts By Abhirup Roy, Rachael Levy and Chris Kirkham June 25 (Reuters) - A first public test of robotaxis by Tesla in Austin, Texas led to multiple traffic problems and driving issues, videos from company-selected riders showed over the first few days. Chief Executive Elon Musk has tied Tesla's financial future to self-driving technology, and with Tesla sales down, the stakes are high. He said Tesla would roll out the service to other U.S. cities later this year and predicted "millions of Teslas" operating "fully autonomously" by the second half of next year. The Tesla fans invited to the trial were strongly supportive and posted videos of hours of trouble-free driving, but issues drew questions from federal road safety regulators and auto safety experts. Issues included Tesla robotaxis entering the wrong lane, dropping passengers off in the middle of multiple-lane roads or at intersections, sudden braking, speeding and driving over a curb. In one instance, a robotaxi drove into a lane meant for oncoming traffic for about 6 seconds. It had pulled into an intersection in its left-turn lane with its turn blinker on. Then the steering wheel wobbled momentarily, and instead of turning it proceeded straight into the lane meant for oncoming traffic, prompting a honk from a car behind it. In another incident, the car suddenly braked with no obstruction apparent in the video. The passenger jerked forward and their belongings were thrown to the floor. In a third video, taken from another vehicle, a robotaxi abruptly stopped twice in the middle of the road while passing police vehicles with flashing lights. Tesla is conducting the test with human safety monitors in the front passenger seat. A fourth video showed the safety monitor hitting a button to stop the robotaxi when a delivery truck in front of it started backing up. "This is awfully early to have a bunch of videos of erratic and poor driving," said Philip Koopman, a Carnegie Mellon University computer-engineering professor and autonomous-technology expert. "I was not expecting as many videos of problematic driving on the very first day," he said. Tesla is testing about 10 to 20 robotaxis, which are standard Model Ys with advanced software, and has been giving rides since Sunday afternoon. Reuters was able to independently verify the locations of at least 11 videos showing issues. Tesla did not respond to a request for comment. A City of Austin spokesperson said officials are aware of the Tesla issues documented on social media and that "when a potential legal or safety concern is brought to our attention, we promptly share it with the company." The spokesperson added that the police department is "actively collaborating with Tesla" to ensure officers can safely interact with the robotaxis. 'CAUGHT ON CAMERA' The incidents caught on camera did not involve accidents, and one expert said some reflected a decision to focus on safety. "So far so good. It handled the situations very well and likely better than even good drivers," Alain Kornhauser, Princeton University professor of operations research and financial engineering, said by email. He added that it would be more dangerous to drive at less than the speed of prevailing traffic, for instance. Tesla's experiment is unusually public. Other companies faced similar issues: Alphabet's Waymo and General Motors' Cruise had their own share of traffic mishaps after showing up on Austin streets. City officials logged dozens of instances over the past two years where residents and authorities reported that robotaxis blocked traffic by stopping in the middle of roads, failed to respond to police directions and could not deal with emergency vehicles and road closures. A serious accident involving a pedestrian in 2023 led Cruise to shut down last year. Waymo is the only robotaxi service in the U.S. to ferry paying customers without a human backup driver or in-car safety monitor. It started offering rides to the general public through Uber in Austin earlier this year. Musk for years has failed to deliver on promises that self-driving Teslas are just around the corner. Tesla rolled out the service for a flat fee of $4.20 to a limited number of handpicked riders. The service is not available to the broader public and the robotaxis operate in a limited area, and avoid difficult intersections and bad weather. Riders were rarely bothered much by driving issues. Farzad Mesbahi, a former Tesla program manager, and his co-passenger hit the "drop off early" option during a ride. The vehicle stopped in an intersection with a stoplight, his video showed. They exit quickly and walk to the sidewalk. "The car should have known to not stop there," Mesbahi is heard saying after the ride. "Opportunities for improvement," the co-passenger says. That is an example "most companies would not be comfortable with," said Kara Kockelman, a professor of transportation engineering at the University of Texas at Austin, adding that she was surprised by the traffic mistakes. "Dropping off people in the middle of a six-lane road or edge of a busy intersection when the traffic is going in the opposite direction is pretty dangerous. They definitely did not want to do this or be caught on camera," she said. (Reporting by Abhirup Roy in San Francisco, Rachael Levy in Washington and Chris Kirkham in Los Angeles; Additional reporting Inaki Malvido, Fernando Robles and Richa Singh; by Editing by Peter Henderson and Nick Zieminski)
Yahoo
11 hours ago
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Tesla's robotaxi peppered with driving mistakes in Texas tests
By Abhirup Roy, Rachael Levy and Chris Kirkham (Reuters) -A first public test of robotaxis by Tesla in Austin, Texas led to multiple traffic problems and driving issues, videos from company-selected riders showed over the first few days. Chief Executive Elon Musk has tied Tesla's financial future to self-driving technology, and with Tesla sales down, the stakes are high. He said Tesla would roll out the service to other U.S. cities later this year and predicted "millions of Teslas" operating "fully autonomously" by the second half of next year. The Tesla fans invited to the trial were strongly supportive and posted videos of hours of trouble-free driving, but issues drew questions from federal road safety regulators and auto safety experts. Issues included Tesla robotaxis entering the wrong lane, dropping passengers off in the middle of multiple-lane roads or at intersections, sudden braking, speeding and driving over a curb. In one instance, a robotaxi drove into a lane meant for oncoming traffic for about 6 seconds. It had pulled into an intersection in its left-turn lane with its turn blinker on. Then the steering wheel wobbled momentarily, and instead of turning it proceeded straight into the lane meant for oncoming traffic, prompting a honk from a car behind it. In another incident, the car suddenly braked with no obstruction apparent in the video. The passenger jerked forward and their belongings were thrown to the floor. In a third video, taken from another vehicle, a robotaxi abruptly stopped twice in the middle of the road while passing police vehicles with flashing lights. Tesla is conducting the test with human safety monitors in the front passenger seat. A fourth video showed the safety monitor hitting a button to stop the robotaxi when a delivery truck in front of it started backing up. "This is awfully early to have a bunch of videos of erratic and poor driving," said Philip Koopman, a Carnegie Mellon University computer-engineering professor and autonomous-technology expert. "I was not expecting as many videos of problematic driving on the very first day," he said. Tesla is testing about 10 to 20 robotaxis, which are standard Model Ys with advanced software, and has been giving rides since Sunday afternoon. Reuters was able to independently verify the locations of at least 11 videos showing issues. Tesla did not respond to a request for comment. A City of Austin spokesperson said officials are aware of the Tesla issues documented on social media and that "when a potential legal or safety concern is brought to our attention, we promptly share it with the company." The spokesperson added that the police department is "actively collaborating with Tesla" to ensure officers can safely interact with the robotaxis. 'CAUGHT ON CAMERA' The incidents caught on camera did not involve accidents, and one expert said some reflected a decision to focus on safety. "So far so good. It handled the situations very well and likely better than even good drivers," Alain Kornhauser, Princeton University professor of operations research and financial engineering, said by email. He added that it would be more dangerous to drive at less than the speed of prevailing traffic, for instance. Tesla's experiment is unusually public. Other companies faced similar issues: Alphabet's Waymo and General Motors' Cruise had their own share of traffic mishaps after showing up on Austin streets. City officials logged dozens of instances over the past two years where residents and authorities reported that robotaxis blocked traffic by stopping in the middle of roads, failed to respond to police directions and could not deal with emergency vehicles and road closures. A serious accident involving a pedestrian in 2023 led Cruise to shut down last year. Waymo is the only robotaxi service in the U.S. to ferry paying customers without a human backup driver or in-car safety monitor. It started offering rides to the general public through Uber in Austin earlier this year. Musk for years has failed to deliver on promises that self-driving Teslas are just around the corner. Tesla rolled out the service for a flat fee of $4.20 to a limited number of handpicked riders. The service is not available to the broader public and the robotaxis operate in a limited area, and avoid difficult intersections and bad weather. Riders were rarely bothered much by driving issues. Farzad Mesbahi, a former Tesla program manager, and his co-passenger hit the "drop off early" option during a ride. The vehicle stopped in an intersection with a stoplight, his video showed. They exit quickly and walk to the sidewalk. "The car should have known to not stop there," Mesbahi is heard saying after the ride. "Opportunities for improvement," the co-passenger says. That is an example "most companies would not be comfortable with," said Kara Kockelman, a professor of transportation engineering at the University of Texas at Austin, adding that she was surprised by the traffic mistakes. "Dropping off people in the middle of a six-lane road or edge of a busy intersection when the traffic is going in the opposite direction is pretty dangerous. They definitely did not want to do this or be caught on camera," she said. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
02-06-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Exclusive: Tesla executives questioned Musk after he denied killing $25,000 EV project
By Rachael Levy (Reuters) -Some senior Tesla (TSLA) executives were alarmed last year when Elon Musk denied a Reuters report that the company had killed a planned all-new $25,000 EV that investors had expected to drive explosive vehicle sales growth, according to people familiar with the matter. 'Reuters is lying,' Musk had posted on X, minutes after the story published on April 5, 2024, halting a 6% decline in Tesla's stock. Tesla shares recovered some of the loss after Musk's post, but the stock was down 3.6% at market close. The executives knew that Musk had, in fact, canceled the low-cost vehicle, which many investors called the Model 2, and pivoted Tesla to focus on self-driving robotaxis, the people said. The company had told employees the project was over weeks earlier, Reuters reported, citing three sources and company documents. Musk's post was so confusing to some senior managers that they asked him whether he'd changed his mind. Musk rejected their concerns and said the project was still dead, according to the people with knowledge of the matter. The executives' concerns, which haven't been previously reported, shed light on the company's struggle to deliver a low-cost, mass-market EV, considered a core promise of the company. Some other Tesla executives were unconcerned about Musk's X post, said people familiar with the matter. The automaker keeps its product plans flexible, one person said, to respond to market conditions. A year later, struggling with a dated lineup and falling sales around the world, Tesla has still not released the low-cost EV that Musk once called pivotal to the company's future. Neither Musk nor Tesla has explicitly confirmed killing an all-new model that investors and Tesla enthusiasts have long referred to as the Model 2 because it would slot in below the current cheapest model in Tesla's lineup, the $42,500 Model 3. On Wednesday, Musk announced that he is leaving his role as a special advisor to U.S. President Donald Trump to return his focus to his companies, including Tesla, SpaceX, xAI, Neuralink, and the social media company X. Tesla and Musk did not respond to requests for comment. Weeks after Musk's post on X, Tesla published an investor update that assured Tesla still planned 'new vehicles, including more affordable models' that will be built on current manufacturing lines. Musk and Tesla had said previously that the planned $25,000 EV would be an all-new model, designed and built from scratch on a new platform. Musk had touted the project as a testbed for groundbreaking manufacturing innovations that would lower the cost of electric vehicles. But instead of an all-new model, Tesla is working on stripped-down versions of the Model 3 sedan and Model Y compact SUV, Reuters reported in April. No pricing on those models has been announced and the cars, set to roll out in the first half of 2025, have been delayed. On Tesla's earnings call in April, engineering chief Lars Moravy said that the affordable models would 'resemble in form and shape the cars we already make.' 'The key is they'll be affordable,' he added, 'and you'll be able to buy one.' After Musk denied the Reuters report about killing the Model 2, executives questioned Musk about what the company should tell perplexed suppliers and investors, people familiar with the matter said. Some executives told associates the denial made no sense — investors and the public would inevitably learn the truth — and worried it would hurt Tesla sales as buyers delayed purchases to wait for a $25,000 Tesla that, in reality, it had decided not to build. Their concerns were not universally shared at the company. One of the sources familiar with the internal deliberations about Musk's public denial told Reuters that Tesla has considered a variety of strategies for producing low-cost EVs over the years. Gary Black, a Tesla investor who manages money for the Future Fund LLC, said he didn't view Musk's statement as a 'denial' at the time, noting that Musk often makes 'brief and abrupt' comments that 'can be about anything.' That said, Black told Reuters he recently sold his fund's $1.2 million position in Tesla in part out of concern the affordable new vehicle will be a "stripped down Model Y" rather than a "differentiated product." Some Tesla executives told associates they were worried that denying the Model 2 was dead could land Musk in hot water with the Securities and Exchange Commission for misleading investors about a future product line that had been baked into their forecasts for the company. Musk had previously paid a $40 million settlement in 2018 over another social media post that the agency alleged misled investors that Musk planned to take Tesla private. Reuters could not determine whether executives approached Musk directly with the SEC enforcement concern, nor if they alerted the SEC itself. An SEC spokesperson declined to comment. Musk's agreement with the SEC requires him to have his social media posts about certain aspects of Tesla, such as new business lines and forecasts about the company, first vetted by a lawyer. Musk despises the settlement, according to people familiar with his thinking, and has told associates he doesn't post anything that needs attorney approval. The same day Musk denied the Reuters report, he lifted Tesla's stock again in after-hours trading with a post saying 'Robotaxi unveil 8/8,' for August 8, a plan he had not widely announced to Tesla employees, said people familiar with the matter. The Hollywood-style debut of a two-door 'Cybercab' ended up being delayed until October and underwhelmed investors. Many investors long ago gave up hope for a transformational $25,000 EV that would juice sales. Instead, Tesla posted its first annual vehicle sales decline in 2024 and sales were down 13% in the first quarter of 2025 amid rising competition and public protests against Musk's work in the Trump administration. In April, Chinese automaker BYD outsold Tesla in Europe for the first time and is taking the global lead in affordable EVs. BYD's entry-level Seagull electric hatchback costs less than $10,000 in China and sells competitively for more than double that price in export markets. By subscribing, you are agreeing to Yahoo's Terms and Privacy Policy Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
02-06-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Exclusive-Tesla executives questioned Musk after he denied killing $25,000 EV project
By Rachael Levy (Reuters) -Some senior Tesla executives were alarmed last year when Elon Musk denied a Reuters report that the company had killed a planned all-new $25,000 EV that investors had expected to drive explosive vehicle sales growth, according to people familiar with the matter. 'Reuters is lying,' Musk had posted on X, minutes after the story published on April 5, 2024, halting a 6% decline in Tesla's stock. Tesla shares recovered some of the loss after Musk's post, but the stock was down 3.6% at market close. The executives knew that Musk had, in fact, canceled the low-cost vehicle, which many investors called the Model 2, and pivoted Tesla to focus on self-driving robotaxis, the people said. The company had told employees the project was over weeks earlier, Reuters reported, citing three sources and company documents. Musk's post was so confusing to some senior managers that they asked him whether he'd changed his mind. Musk rejected their concerns and said the project was still dead, according to the people with knowledge of the matter. The executives' concerns, which haven't been previously reported, shed light on the company's struggle to deliver a low-cost, mass-market EV, considered a core promise of the company. Some other Tesla executives were unconcerned about Musk's X post, said people familiar with the matter. The automaker keeps its product plans flexible, one person said, to respond to market conditions. A year later, struggling with a dated lineup and falling sales around the world, Tesla has still not released the low-cost EV that Musk once called pivotal to the company's future. Neither Musk nor Tesla has explicitly confirmed killing an all-new model that investors and Tesla enthusiasts have long referred to as the Model 2 because it would slot in below the current cheapest model in Tesla's lineup, the $42,500 Model 3. On Wednesday, Musk announced that he is leaving his role as a special advisor to U.S. President Donald Trump to return his focus to his companies, including Tesla, SpaceX, xAI, Neuralink, and the social media company X. Tesla and Musk did not respond to requests for comment. Weeks after Musk's post on X, Tesla published an investor update that assured Tesla still planned 'new vehicles, including more affordable models' that will be built on current manufacturing lines. Musk and Tesla had said previously that the planned $25,000 EV would be an all-new model, designed and built from scratch on a new platform. Musk had touted the project as a testbed for groundbreaking manufacturing innovations that would lower the cost of electric vehicles. But instead of an all-new model, Tesla is working on stripped-down versions of the Model 3 sedan and Model Y compact SUV, Reuters reported in April. No pricing on those models has been announced and the cars, set to roll out in the first half of 2025, have been delayed. On Tesla's earnings call in April, engineering chief Lars Moravy said that the affordable models would 'resemble in form and shape the cars we already make.' 'The key is they'll be affordable,' he added, 'and you'll be able to buy one.' After Musk denied the Reuters report about killing the Model 2, executives questioned Musk about what the company should tell perplexed suppliers and investors, people familiar with the matter said. Some executives told associates the denial made no sense -- investors and the public would inevitably learn the truth -- and worried it would hurt Tesla sales as buyers delayed purchases to wait for a $25,000 Tesla that, in reality, it had decided not to build. Their concerns were not universally shared at the company. One of the sources familiar with the internal deliberations about Musk's public denial told Reuters that Tesla has considered a variety of strategies for producing low-cost EVs over the years. Gary Black, a Tesla investor who manages money for the Future Fund LLC, said he didn't view Musk's statement as a 'denial' at the time, noting that Musk often makes 'brief and abrupt' comments that 'can be about anything.' That said, Black told Reuters he recently sold his fund's $1.2 million position in Tesla in part out of concern the affordable new vehicle will be a "stripped down Model Y" rather than a "differentiated product." WORRIES ABOUT SEC ENFORCEMENT Some Tesla executives told associates they were worried that denying the Model 2 was dead could land Musk in hot water with the Securities and Exchange Commission for misleading investors about a future product line that had been baked into their forecasts for the company. Musk had previously paid a $40 million settlement in 2018 over another social media post that the agency alleged misled investors that Musk planned to take Tesla private. Reuters could not determine whether executives approached Musk directly with the SEC enforcement concern, nor if they alerted the SEC itself. An SEC spokesperson declined to comment. Musk's agreement with the SEC requires him to have his social media posts about certain aspects of Tesla, such as new business lines and forecasts about the company, first vetted by a lawyer. Musk despises the settlement, according to people familiar with his thinking, and has told associates he doesn't post anything that needs attorney approval. The same day Musk denied the Reuters report, he lifted Tesla's stock again in after-hours trading with a post saying 'Robotaxi unveil 8/8,' for August 8, a plan he had not widely announced to Tesla employees, said people familiar with the matter. The Hollywood-style debut of a two-door 'Cybercab' ended up being delayed until October and underwhelmed investors. Many investors long ago gave up hope for a transformational $25,000 EV that would juice sales. Instead, Tesla posted its first annual vehicle sales decline in 2024 and sales were down 13% in the first quarter of 2025 amid rising competition and public protests against Musk's work in the Trump administration. In April, Chinese automaker BYD outsold Tesla in Europe for the first time and is taking the global lead in affordable EVs. BYD's entry-level Seagull electric hatchback costs less than $10,000 in China and sells competitively for more than double that price in export markets. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
02-06-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Exclusive-Tesla executives questioned Musk after he denied killing $25,000 EV project
By Rachael Levy (Reuters) -Some senior Tesla executives were alarmed last year when Elon Musk denied a Reuters report that the company had killed a planned all-new $25,000 EV that investors had expected to drive explosive vehicle sales growth, according to people familiar with the matter. 'Reuters is lying,' Musk had posted on X, minutes after the story published on April 5, 2024, halting a 6% decline in Tesla's stock. Tesla shares recovered some of the loss after Musk's post, but the stock was down 3.6% at market close. The executives knew that Musk had, in fact, canceled the low-cost vehicle, which many investors called the Model 2, and pivoted Tesla to focus on self-driving robotaxis, the people said. The company had told employees the project was over weeks earlier, Reuters reported, citing three sources and company documents. Musk's post was so confusing to some senior managers that they asked him whether he'd changed his mind. Musk rejected their concerns and said the project was still dead, according to the people with knowledge of the matter. The executives' concerns, which haven't been previously reported, shed light on the company's struggle to deliver a low-cost, mass-market EV, considered a core promise of the company. Some other Tesla executives were unconcerned about Musk's X post, said people familiar with the matter. The automaker keeps its product plans flexible, one person said, to respond to market conditions. A year later, struggling with a dated lineup and falling sales around the world, Tesla has still not released the low-cost EV that Musk once called pivotal to the company's future. Neither Musk nor Tesla has explicitly confirmed killing an all-new model that investors and Tesla enthusiasts have long referred to as the Model 2 because it would slot in below the current cheapest model in Tesla's lineup, the $42,500 Model 3. On Wednesday, Musk announced that he is leaving his role as a special advisor to U.S. President Donald Trump to return his focus to his companies, including Tesla, SpaceX, xAI, Neuralink, and the social media company X. Tesla and Musk did not respond to requests for comment. Weeks after Musk's post on X, Tesla published an investor update that assured Tesla still planned 'new vehicles, including more affordable models' that will be built on current manufacturing lines. Musk and Tesla had said previously that the planned $25,000 EV would be an all-new model, designed and built from scratch on a new platform. Musk had touted the project as a testbed for groundbreaking manufacturing innovations that would lower the cost of electric vehicles. But instead of an all-new model, Tesla is working on stripped-down versions of the Model 3 sedan and Model Y compact SUV, Reuters reported in April. No pricing on those models has been announced and the cars, set to roll out in the first half of 2025, have been delayed. On Tesla's earnings call in April, engineering chief Lars Moravy said that the affordable models would 'resemble in form and shape the cars we already make.' 'The key is they'll be affordable,' he added, 'and you'll be able to buy one.' After Musk denied the Reuters report about killing the Model 2, executives questioned Musk about what the company should tell perplexed suppliers and investors, people familiar with the matter said. Some executives told associates the denial made no sense -- investors and the public would inevitably learn the truth -- and worried it would hurt Tesla sales as buyers delayed purchases to wait for a $25,000 Tesla that, in reality, it had decided not to build. Their concerns were not universally shared at the company. One of the sources familiar with the internal deliberations about Musk's public denial told Reuters that Tesla has considered a variety of strategies for producing low-cost EVs over the years. Gary Black, a Tesla investor who manages money for the Future Fund LLC, said he didn't view Musk's statement as a 'denial' at the time, noting that Musk often makes 'brief and abrupt' comments that 'can be about anything.' That said, Black told Reuters he recently sold his fund's $1.2 million position in Tesla in part out of concern the affordable new vehicle will be a "stripped down Model Y" rather than a "differentiated product." WORRIES ABOUT SEC ENFORCEMENT Some Tesla executives told associates they were worried that denying the Model 2 was dead could land Musk in hot water with the Securities and Exchange Commission for misleading investors about a future product line that had been baked into their forecasts for the company. Musk had previously paid a $40 million settlement in 2018 over another social media post that the agency alleged misled investors that Musk planned to take Tesla private. Reuters could not determine whether executives approached Musk directly with the SEC enforcement concern, nor if they alerted the SEC itself. An SEC spokesperson declined to comment. Musk's agreement with the SEC requires him to have his social media posts about certain aspects of Tesla, such as new business lines and forecasts about the company, first vetted by a lawyer. Musk despises the settlement, according to people familiar with his thinking, and has told associates he doesn't post anything that needs attorney approval. The same day Musk denied the Reuters report, he lifted Tesla's stock again in after-hours trading with a post saying 'Robotaxi unveil 8/8,' for August 8, a plan he had not widely announced to Tesla employees, said people familiar with the matter. The Hollywood-style debut of a two-door 'Cybercab' ended up being delayed until October and underwhelmed investors. Many investors long ago gave up hope for a transformational $25,000 EV that would juice sales. Instead, Tesla posted its first annual vehicle sales decline in 2024 and sales were down 13% in the first quarter of 2025 amid rising competition and public protests against Musk's work in the Trump administration. In April, Chinese automaker BYD outsold Tesla in Europe for the first time and is taking the global lead in affordable EVs. BYD's entry-level Seagull electric hatchback costs less than $10,000 in China and sells competitively for more than double that price in export markets. Sign in to access your portfolio
