Robotaxis are self-driving vehicles that could deliver transport as a service, and this category tracks how close they are. Our posts follow the technology from early predictions of autonomous cars to the manufacturers now building them, including Tesla’s full self-driving progress and BYD’s autonomous vehicles. We also look at how AI is speeding up solutions to the hard problems of driving.
The economics matter as much as the engineering. Posts such as Tesla Robotaxi Finance Model and Tesla Makes Robotaxis Economic set out why a vehicle that earns money while its owner sleeps changes the cost of getting around, and why electric drivetrains, with their low running costs, suit the job. Another post argues that autonomous vehicles save lives by removing the human error behind most crashes.
There is a local angle too. Robotaxis Not Rail for the Sunshine Coast asks whether flexible, driverless electric services could serve a spread-out region better than expensive fixed rail. Taken together, the posts explain why transport may be disrupted far faster than governments and forecasters assume, what could slow it, and what it would mean for cities, car ownership, parking and jobs. Read them to see where autonomy stands and why it is tied so closely to electric vehicles and cheap clean power.
Robotaxis are self-driving vehicles that could deliver transport as a service, and this category tracks how close they are. Our posts follow the technology from early predictions of autonomous cars to the manufacturers now building them, including Tesla’s full self-driving progress and BYD’s autonomous vehicles. We also look at how AI is speeding up solutions to the hard problems of driving.
The economics matter as much as the engineering. Posts such as Tesla Robotaxi Finance Model and Tesla Makes Robotaxis Economic set out why a vehicle that earns money while its owner sleeps changes the cost of getting around, and why electric drivetrains, with their low running costs, suit the job. Another post argues that autonomous vehicles save lives by removing the human error behind most crashes.
There is a local angle too. Robotaxis Not Rail for the Sunshine Coast asks whether flexible, driverless electric services could serve a spread-out region better than expensive fixed rail. Taken together, the posts explain why transport may be disrupted far faster than governments and forecasters assume, what could slow it, and what it would mean for cities, car ownership, parking and jobs. Read them to see where autonomy stands and why it is tied so closely to electric vehicles and cheap clean power.
BYD autonomous vehicle software and hardware were announced on Feb 10 2025 and demonstrate that autonomous driving is rapidly advancing and the majority of vehicles during the next 3 years will be capable of becoming robotaxis, enabling personal public transport to extend not just from 60 cities to globally.
AI is driving a rapid advances in robotaxis and autonomous driving. Like many new technologies this has taken 70 years, and in less than 5 years will see all cars with full autonomy with the advances in AI and with electric vehicles now cheaper than internal combustion engines
Tesla is rapidly improving its Full Self-Driving (FSD) technology, with a 1,000x improvement expected by 2Q25. This will make it safer than human drivers. Tesla is also planning a robotaxi fleet with the Cybercab. Existing full self driving is already 10 times better than humans. Track the data, not the naysayers.
Tesla has been promising a robotaxi for some years. This is a new robotaxi finance model and confirms what Tony Seba of RethinkX, or Ark Invest all predict. The robotaxi is a trillion dollar industry and Tesla valuation will depend on delivering robotaxi services.
Robotaxis not Rail for Sunshine Coast is a novel view of the 25 years of planning transport from Brisbane to the Sunshine Coast. The project has reached another milestone. Is it the wrong one.
Over 30 robotaxi companies in 2022 developing either vehicles, autonomous systems, its clear this technology is now in the deployment phase.,
Autonomous vehicles saves lives is without question with current data showing 6 times less accidents per million miles driven. Widespread adoption will save Australia alone $30 billion per year with 1400 less deaths and 46,000 less hospitalization.
Simple napkin maths says that Tesla makes robotaxis economic. In fact the numbers are so high they are just not believable? So what is stopping this? Politics? Technology. The only thing seems to be timing. Will it be this year? 2024?
Ten issues say why autonomous cars will be here by 2023. Rapid rise of EV sales, the money invested in research and development and will lead to biggest consumer boom ever.
