Tesla is gearing up to launch its self-driving car service in Austin, Texas, as early as June 2025, reported by CEO Elon Musk. During Tesla’s fourth-quarter earnings call, Musk confirmed that the company remains on track to deploy its Full Self-Driving (FSD) technology, marking a major milestone in autonomous vehicle development.
“We’re confident in launching unsupervised, full self-driving in Austin this June,” Musk stated. “We already have Teslas operating autonomously at our Fremont factory, and we’ll soon expand that to our Texas facility.”
Tesla’s Self-Driving Rollout Strategy
Tesla had previously set a goal of launching its self-driving service in California and Texas by 2025. Now, with Austin selected as the test market, the company is moving closer to making that vision a reality.
Reports of Tesla working with Austin regulators surfaced in December when emails obtained by Bloomberg revealed the company’s discussions with city officials. At the time, Tesla had not finalized Austin as the launch city, as it was still securing regulatory approval.
While Tesla originally planned to introduce the service with its upcoming Cybercab, the company will instead deploy its Model Y and Model 3 vehicles until the Cybercab’s expected debut in 2027.
“Looking ahead, 2025 is shaping up to be a defining year for Tesla,” Musk said. “It may very well be the most significant year in our history.”
A Cautious Yet Ambitious Approach
Musk emphasized that Tesla will take a measured approach to rolling out its self-driving service.
“We’re starting small, making sure everything runs smoothly, and then scaling up—always with safety as our top priority,” he explained.
Tesla’s focus on safety comes amid challenges faced by self-driving taxi services. While autonomous vehicles statistically outperform human drivers in safety, high-profile incidents continue to raise concerns.
For instance, in 2023, California regulators suspended Cruise’s driverless car operations due to safety issues. More recently, in early 2024, two Waymo autonomous vehicles collided with the same towed pickup truck twice in one day.
How Tesla’s AI-Driven Self-Driving Works
Unlike many autonomous systems that rely on high-precision maps, Tesla’s Full Self-Driving AI analyzes and adapts to roads in real time. This approach enables Tesla vehicles to drive anywhere without requiring pre-mapped routes.
Austin will serve as the proving ground for this technology before expanding to other regions. If all goes as planned, Tesla expects a broader rollout soon after the Austin launch.
With self-driving technology advancing rapidly, Tesla’s June 2025 launch in Austin could mark a turning point for the future of autonomous vehicles in the U.S.