• by Tanya Gazdik , September 3, 2024

Image Credit: Green Drive

Tesla reportedly is planning a big Hollywood-style unveiling of its so-called robotaxi at the Warner Bros. studios. 

The reveal is planned for Oct. 10 at the Burbank, California facility, sources told Bloomberg.  

“Musk has been prioritizing autonomy and artificial intelligence, shifting away from Tesla’s core business of selling EVs to consumers,” notes Bloomberg. “The Austin-based company is also creating a proprietary ride-hailing app powered by a fleet of both purpose-built robotaxis and consumer cars that don’t require a human driver. The CEO may give more details about the technology at the LA event.”

The city-like area could be the perfect environment for demo robotaxi drives. 

“This idea is supported by new reports about increased data collection from vehicles driving in the area.” according to Autoevolution. “The facility provides all the characteristics of a suburban neighborhood, with the advantage of a safe, controlled environment. This makes sense, as Tesla would not want anything spoiling its launch.”

Tesla and Warner Bros. didn’t respond to requests for comment, per multiple news outlets.

“The news that Tesla will likely reveal its long-awaited, much-debated autonomous robotaxi at the Warner Bros. movie studio in Los Angeles underscores how much ground the company needs to cover in order to catch up to its rivals in the self-driving space,” according to The Verge. “It also inadvertently provides a ready-made metaphor for the types of Hollywood trickery Elon Musk and Co. will no doubt need to employ in order to convince their supporters that Tesla’s driverless technology is really ready this time.”

Tesla postponed the robotaxi event, initially scheduled for Aug. 8, due to design change requests by Musk, Bloomberg reported in July. The company also needed more time to create prototypes for demonstration purposes, people familiar with the matter said.

"Tesla’s reveal is more than just a product launch, it is a historic moment in the company’s history," according to Green Drive. "The Robotaxi indicates a potential change in the transportation business. If successful, it has the potential to disrupt the ride-hailing sector and reinvent urban mobility. The delay, while first viewed as a negative, may ultimately prove beneficial. It enables Tesla to introduce a more sophisticated and innovative product."

Musk first announced the robotaxi event for August shortly after Reuters reported back in April that Tesla was scrapping plans to build a long-anticipated low-cost electric car.

“Before the Trump era, Musk was widely seen in the popular imagination as a forward-thinking individualist simply creating interesting technologies, even if the reality was much more complicated,” notes Gizmodo.  “But here in 2024, Musk is a hyperpartisan hack who’s openly endorsed Trump. That’s not typically the kind of thing the makers of any mainstream product, especially movies and entertainment, would want to have associated with their company.”