The electric carmaker’s boss did not provide details about the plan, but said the Tesla Robotaxi launch event would take place on August 8. Tesla’s shares rose more than 3% after the announcement on social network X.

Musk has long boasted about Tesla’s work on its self-driving electric car system. In a March 2024 post on X, he wrote: “Tesla models with FSD (full self-driving) will be so amazing that in the future it will seem weird to have a human driving a car!” Musk also said that Tesla owners with FSD will be able to use their cars as robotaxis.

However, the deployment of self-driving vehicles in the US is still facing many challenges and difficulties due to concerns about safety from both regulators and the public.

A robotaxi operated by Google-owned software company Waymo in the city has been the target of vandalism by anti-self-driving car protesters. Meanwhile, GM-owned Cruise indefinitely suspended its robotaxi service in late October 2023 after a series of accidents prompted California regulators to tighten regulations on the vehicles. Tesla’s autopilot feature has also come under scrutiny after the company was accused of marketing the feature beyond its capabilities.

Tesla’s robotaxi announcement comes after the company abandoned plans to produce an electric car that would cost nearly $25,000. Tesla also reported a sharp decline in car sales in the first quarter of 2024, amid a gloomy outlook for demand for electric vehicles, while established brands like Toyota posted higher sales. Tesla reported an 8.5% drop in global deliveries in the first quarter of 2024.