AUSTIN, Texas — On a sweltering Tuesday afternoon, I hailed my first Tesla robotaxi using the updated Tesla app. Within three minutes, a white Model Y with no driver, equipped with an array of cameras and the distinctive LiDAR-free Hardware 5 sensor suite, pulled up to the curb on Congress Avenue. The doors opened automatically. A voice said, "Welcome, Elena. Your destination is the Texas State Capitol. Estimated time: 7 minutes. Please fasten your seatbelt." And then we were off.

The ride was, frankly, boring — and that is the highest compliment an autonomous vehicle can receive. The car navigated downtown traffic, handled an aggressive lane change by a human-driven pickup truck, yielded to a jaywalking pedestrian, and executed a perfect parallel park at the destination. The cost: $4.25 for a five-mile trip, roughly 60% less than the equivalent Uber or Lyft ride in Austin. Tesla's pricing model — $0.85 per mile with no surge pricing — fundamentally undercuts the human-driven competition.

Tesla has launched with 300 vehicles serving a 40-square-mile area covering downtown Austin, the University of Texas campus, and surrounding neighborhoods. The fleet will expand to 1,000 vehicles by year-end. Musk has stated that Tesla will manufacture purpose-built robotaxis — vehicles without steering wheels or pedals — at Gigafactory Texas starting in 2027.