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Tesla's new safety page says its Robotaxi fleet drove about 3.1 million autonomous miles between Jan 22 and Oct 18. That breaks down as 2.12M in Austin, 608K in Dallas, 226K in Houston and about 160K across the three Florida cities. Tesla reports zero injuries, airbag deployments or pedestrian and cyclist impacts, against its own estimate of about 9.1 injury collisions for human drivers over the same miles. The same report names Las Vegas, Jacksonville, Phoenix and San Antonio as coming soon, with no dates.
Why it matters: It's the first mileage figure Tesla has broken out by city, but the data is self-reported, doesn't count non-injury collisions and doesn't match NHTSA's crash-file cutoffs, so no independent crash rate is possible yet.
Not a Tesla App · 2026-10-21
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Semafor reports, citing people familiar with the plans, that Waymo will use its new $5B debt financing to roughly double its ~4,000-vehicle fleet to about 8,000 by the end of 2026 and reach 20,000 by the end of 2027. Waymo did not comment. Much of the growth would come from Zeekr-built Ojai vehicles that are fitted with Waymo's system in Mesa, Arizona.
Why it matters: Doubling a fleet in under three months would be the fastest scale-up the industry has seen, so watch whether the 2026 target holds.
Gizmodo (citing Semafor) · 2026-10-20
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After Q3 results, engineering chief Lars Moravy said Tesla is trying to get Cybercabs to customers by the end of 2026, and Tesla said Cybercab service would expand to Dallas next month. NHTSA is reviewing how Tesla certified a car with no steering wheel or pedals under federal safety standards, and Tesla has until Oct 30 to respond. Musk said most Cybercabs will stay Tesla-owned and run on its ride-hailing network.
Why it matters: Selling the car to customers depends on how NHTSA treats Tesla's self-certification, and Oct 30 is the next checkpoint.
Claims Journal (Reuters) · 2026-10-22
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Waymo will bring electric Jaguar I-PACE vehicles to the Madrid region in the coming days. Trained specialists will drive them at first, followed by a fully autonomous ride-hailing service planned for 2027 under the testing framework of Spain's traffic agency, the DGT. Madrid joins London, Tokyo (2027) and Toronto (2028) in Waymo's push outside the US.
Why it matters: Madrid would be Waymo's first market in Spain, and it will face rivals from day one: the DGT just issued its first national AV testing permits to WeRide and Uber, whose Madrid services are expected by the end of 2026.
TimesLIVE (Reuters) · 2026-10-20
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Waymo now picks up and drops off at dedicated autonomous-vehicle zones at Terminals 1 and 3. Only some riders get airport trips at first, with all customers to follow. It's Waymo's sixth major airport, after Phoenix, Nashville, San Antonio, San Francisco and San José.
Why it matters: Airport trips are among the most valuable rides in ride-hailing, and in Las Vegas Waymo is up against Zoox, which already serves the airport.
TechCrunch · 2026-10-21
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A Cybercab with a safety monitor aboard and no passengers drove into a large, water-filled pothole in an Austin parking lot at about 5 mph in August, before public Cybercab rides began. It caused property damage only. The Austin American-Statesman counts 26 Tesla Robotaxi crashes in Austin since the June 2025 launch.
Why it matters: It's a minor crash, but it's the first on file for a vehicle that has no manual controls, at the same time NHTSA is reviewing how that vehicle was certified.
Austin American-Statesman via Audacy · 2026-10-22
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Under a memorandum of understanding, Pony.ai would supply its Gen-7 robotaxis, inDrive would operate rides on its app and Nvidia would provide its AV platform. Tests with safety operators are slated for Astana in the first half of 2027. Pony.ai is aiming for more than 3,500 robotaxis in over 20 cities by the end of 2026, up from 1,975 at the end of June.
Why it matters: Chinese robotaxi companies keep signing deals in markets that US players haven't entered, though an MOU is not yet a binding contract.
TechCrunch · 2026-10-22