AUSTIN — Tesla is staging an invite-only launch today for its Cybercab, a two-seat robotaxi with no steering wheel or pedals, adding the purpose-built car to a ride-hailing service that already uses driverless Model Ys.
Tesla posted an “Exclusive Access: Cybercab” graphic dated Sept. 3 in Austin, Electrek and Motor1 reported. Guests are selected Robotaxi riders and sweepstakes winners, age 21 and up. Tesla has said it will livestream the event. Engineer Eric Earley told invited guests on social media the gathering was 4:45 p.m. downtown; other coverage puts the formal event at Gigafactory Texas.
The Austin American-Statesman reported Tesla registered 45 Cybercabs with the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles ahead of the debut. Production began at Giga Texas earlier this year. Employee rides started in July, Motor1 reported.
Less than a week away https://t.co/tL1j0dR3XW
— Tesla (@Tesla) August 29, 2026
This is not Tesla’s first paid robotaxi. Model Y Robotaxis began in Austin in June 2025. Unsupervised rides — no safety monitor in the car — now cover the Austin metro, including the airport, Reuters and local trackers reported. Tesla also offers unsupervised service in parts of Dallas and Houston and in Miami, Tampa, and Orlando. The San Francisco Bay Area still uses a safety driver under California rules.
"With the launch of the Cybercab, Tesla is preparing to compete with Waymo and Zoox in the US. In comparison with these firms, the Cybercab offers users the opportunity to travel in a more stylish ride.
"The Cybercab can carry two passengers and features butterfly doors. While Zoox and Waymo aaren’tas stylish, they can carry more passengers than the Cybercab," techgenyz wrote. "Tesla is tackling this by also offering its larger Model Y, which can carry more passengers, as part of its Robotaxi service. Once the Cybercab is available for public use, we will see how this competition unfolds."
The commercial fleet is still small. Independent trackers and Electrek have put active unsupervised vehicles in the low dozens, not hundreds. Waymo runs a larger Austin fleet. Tesla AI lead Ashok Elluswamy told investors the robotaxi program had driven more than 380,000 unsupervised miles with “zero notable incidents.” Critics circulated video of an Austin Model Y robotaxi pushing through plastic bollards.
Texas allows Level 4 operation without human controls in defined conditions. Thursday’s event is a product launch, not a new federal sign-off. Paying riders should not expect Cybercabs on every block overnight.
