Tesla CEO Elon Musk says the company’s Robotaxi service will remove safety monitors from vehicles by the end of 2025. The update came in response to users on X who shared their early experiences with the Robotaxi app, which went public for iOS users in select U.S. cities earlier today.
One early rider wrote that they downloaded the app, joined the waitlist, and were matched with their first ride in just two hours, though it was still supervised with a safety driver behind the wheel. Musk replied, noting: “The safety driver is just there for the first few months to be extra safe. Should be no safety driver by end of year.”
The Robotaxi iOS app, which quickly climbed to the top spot on the App Store’s Travel app charts, allows users to join a waitlist for future rides. Tesla confirmed that Robotaxi access will expand soon, with an Android version of the app also on the way.
In Austin, where Tesla launched its first Robotaxi pilot this past June, the company has already been testing rides without a driver in the front seat. Instead, a safety monitor sits in the passenger seat. However, for Robotaxi trips that take to Austin freeways, Tesla still places a monitor in the driver’s seat, similar to how rides are being handled in the Bay Area. The official Tesla Robotaxi account previously said on X that this was a “self-imposed cautious first step toward expanding to highways.”
With Musk now promising to remove the safety monitor entirely before the end of the year, Tesla appears confident in its technology as it prepares for a much wider Robotaxi rollout across the U.S.
