Tesla has started talks with Silicon Valley’s busiest airports as it looks to expand its Robotaxi ride-hailing service in California. According to Politico, the company has expressed interest in securing permits for operations at San Francisco International Airport (SFO), San Jose Mineta International Airport (SJC), and Oakland International Airport (OAK).
“We have received a request from Tesla expressing interest in securing a permit for operations at SFO, and have responded back to begin scheduling discussions on this,” Doug Yakel, public information officer for SFO, told Politico. San Jose and Oakland airport officials also acknowledged that Tesla has inquired about permits but hasn’t yet filed formal applications.
Tesla launched its Robotaxi app publicly in the U.S. and Canada earlier this month, after initially piloting the service in Austin, Texas, and then expanding it to California’s Bay Area. Days before the app’s public rollout, Tesla also expanded Robotaxi rides in Austin to freeways for the first time.
Currently, Tesla’s Bay Area Robotaxi service operates with safety drivers behind the wheel, which makes it more of a Tesla-run ride-hailing service than a fully autonomous taxi offering. However, CEO Elon Musk recently said the company expects to be able to remove safety drivers before the end of this year.
Airports are a key battleground for autonomous ride-hailing companies like Waymo, which already operates at San Jose Mineta International and is working on agreements in San Francisco. Tesla’s push to access the region’s airports signals its ambition to compete head-to-head in one of the most lucrative markets for ride-hailing.
Tesla’s expansion into airports could also be critical to Musk’s larger vision for autonomy. A new $1 trillion compensation plan proposed by Tesla’s board earlier this month even ties part of Musk’s potential payout to scaling a million robotaxis globally.
For now, though, Tesla appears focused on growing its footprint, gathering data, and proving out its ride-hailing model in California before fully transitioning to driverless Robotaxi operations.
