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The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
Technology
Nick Robins-Early, Dara Kerr and Johana Bhuiyan

‘Lidar is lame’: why Elon Musk’s vision for a self-driving Tesla taxi faltered

a driverless car on the street
A Tesla robotaxi in Austin this week. Photograph: Joel Angel Juarez/Reuters

After years of promising investors that millions of Tesla robotaxis would soon fill the streets, Elon Musk debuted his driverless car service in a limited public rollout in Austin, Texas. It did not go smoothly.

The 22 June launch initially appeared successful enough, with a flood of videos from pro-Tesla social media influencers praising the service and sharing footage of their rides. Musk celebrated it as a triumph, and the following day, Tesla’s stock rose nearly 10%.

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