---
title: "Tesla starts Robotaxi rides in Austin with no safety monitor inside"
description: "Elon Musk said some Robotaxi cars now run without a safety monitor on board, though a chase car still follows them."
url: https://kurddevelopers.com/en/news/tesla-robotaxi-austin-no-safety-monitor
language: en # English
type: news
published: 2026-01-22T18:50:00.000Z
updated: 2026-11-01T22:20:43.000Z
author: "Osamah Ismail"
author_url: https://kurddevelopers.com/en/author/1
section: "Startups"
tags: ["Tesla","Robotaxi","Austin","Self-driving","FSD"]
sources: ["Elon Musk (X)","Tesla","TechCrunch"]
image: https://kurddevelopers.com/uploads/2026/11/model-3-social-6b6776b7.jpg
translations:
  ku: https://kurddevelopers.com/news/tesla-robotaxi-austin-no-safety-monitor
  ar: https://kurddevelopers.com/ar/news/tesla-robotaxi-austin-no-safety-monitor
publisher: Kurd Developers
publisher_url: https://kurddevelopers.com/
---

# Tesla starts Robotaxi rides in Austin with no safety monitor inside

> Elon Musk said some Robotaxi cars now run without a safety monitor on board, though a chase car still follows them.

![Image: Tesla](https://kurddevelopers.com/uploads/2026/11/model-3-social-6b6776b7.jpg)

On January 22, Elon Musk wrote on X: "Started Tesla Robotaxi drives in Austin with **no safety monitor in the car**."

## What changed?

- Robotaxi launched in Austin in **June 2025**, but with a safety monitor sitting in the front passenger seat
- In **December 2025** Tesla began testing without a monitor
- Now Tesla's head of AI, **Ashok Elluswamy**, says: "Starting with a few unsupervised vehicles mixed in with the broader fleet"

## Note

According to a post from a rider, Tesla is charging for the rides, and another car follows the driverless vehicles (a chase car).

**Sources:** Elon Musk (X), Tesla, TechCrunch

---

Published by [Kurd Developers](https://kurddevelopers.com/) on 2026-01-22. Cite as: “Tesla starts Robotaxi rides in Austin with no safety monitor inside”, Kurd Developers, https://kurddevelopers.com/en/news/tesla-robotaxi-austin-no-safety-monitor