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Tesla Quietly Pauses Its “Unsupervised” Robotaxi Rides as Reality Sets In

Frank Landymore

created: Jan. 29, 2026, 2:11 p.m. | updated: Feb. 8, 2026, 1:22 p.m.

It appears that Tesla CEO Elon Musk may have once again duped his fans and investors — which, these days, is an increasingly meaningless distinction. Dedicated as he is to the Tesla cause, he traveled to Austin to try out an “unsupervised” Robotaxi ride — but was left sorely disappointed. After a gobsmacking 42 rides, every single one he got came with a human safety monitor. To be fair to Tesla, it looks like the “unsupervised” rides stopped after a massive winter storm slammed the country on Saturday, including Austin. It’s worth asking why the unsupervised rides were launched just two days before a winter storm that everyone knew was coming.

1 week, 6 days ago: Futurism