TSLA: Tesla Stock Slides as Robotaxi Autonomy Faces Scrutiny

This article first appeared on GuruFocus.

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) shares slipped about 1% on Friday morning after questions emerged over the autonomy of its Austin robotaxis.

The company recently claimed the vehicles operate without a safety monitor onboard. CEO Elon Musk said the service had just started Tesla Robotaxi drives in Austin with no safety monitor in the car.

However, reports and videos circulating online suggest a trailing Tesla follows each robotaxi, likely carrying a human to supervise the ride. The trailing car appears to maintain a distance of 15-20 feet from the autonomous vehicle.

Industry observers say this raises questions about whether the Austin robotaxis are truly unsupervised. Tesla has not clarified the purpose of the following vehicle.

The development comes amid intense competition in the robotaxi market. Waymo (GOOG), Zoox (AMZN), and Chinese firms like WeRide, Baidu (BIDU), and Pony.ai (PONY) are also expanding autonomous services. Analysts note that U.S. and international players are rapidly deploying vehicles while navigating safety regulations and public perception.

Investors will watch closely how Tesla addresses these concerns as it seeks to scale its robotaxi operations.