Tesla stock fell 6% on Friday after the company's Thursday launch event for its Cybercab robotaxi disappointed investors and federal safety regulators opened an audit query into whether the vehicle was properly certified for public roads.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration launched the probe on Thursday, the same day Tesla began commercial deployment of a small number of Cybercab vehicles in Austin, Texas, according to NHTSA. The agency said it is examining the process and technical data Tesla relied on when self-certifying the Cybercab as compliant with all applicable Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards. NHTSA noted that the vehicles lack permanently attached conventional manual controls, including a brake pedal, gas pedal, steering wheel, and mirrors.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk was absent from Thursday's Austin event, which was closed to the public and not broadcast, according to CNBC . Tesla told users of its Tesla Robotaxi app that they could book a driverless Cybercab trip within a geofenced area around Austin.
RBC Capital Markets analysts said Tesla's update left core questions unanswered, including those around pricing, production timelines, and regulatory status, according to CNBC. Wells Fargo analysts flagged operational stumbles in Austin, pointing to customer complaints about wrong routes, destinations being skipped, and lengthy waits or ride durations.
Friday's decline followed a 5.4% gain in Tesla stock on Thursday ahead of the event.
The Cybercab seats two passengers and omits traditional controls entirely, with butterfly doors in place of conventional ones. Tesla began manufacturing the Cybercab at its Giga Texas facility earlier this year. Tesla VP of Vehicle Engineering Lars Moravy had said the Cybercab was designed to meet all federal safety standards from the start, allowing Tesla to self-certify it like any other vehicle — avoiding the 2,500-unit annual cap that applies to manufacturers seeking a special NHTSA exemption.
The Austin deployment, and NHTSA's scrutiny of it, comes as Tesla works to establish itself in a robotaxi market currently led by Alphabet's Waymo, which already offers paid rides in 14 cities with approximately 4,000 autonomous vehicles in service . Tesla's ride-hailing network has expanded to Dallas and Houston alongside Austin. Musk has said material revenue from the Cybercab is unlikely before at least 2027.
