Elon Musk proposes to launch Tesla Robotaxi in China, claims report

Tesla is planning to bring its Robotaxi to China as well as test its advanced driver-assistance package in the country. Tesla CEO Elon Musk made this proposal during his recent visit to China. He had postponed his previously scheduled visit to India and then went on a visit to China.

According to Chinese media reports, Chinese officials took Musk's proposal to launch Robotaxi in China positively. In April, Tesla announced that it would introduce its Robotaxi on August 8 this year. Because American EV makers are facing weak sales and tough competition from Chinese EVs.

According to reports, Chinese officials responded to Tesla's proposal by saying that the country "welcomes Tesla to conduct some Robotaxi testing". Officials are also quoted as saying they hope Tesla can set a "good example."

Obtaining authorization to collect data for its Full Self-Driving (FSD) features will be a hurdle for Tesla, though. which Tesla vehicle owners require. China has opposed the gathering of customer data by foreign automakers on its citizens. Furthermore, the use of FSD has not yet received approval.

Tesla's intentions to introduce Robotaxi in China depend on receiving approval to use FSD. During his visit to Beijing last month, Musk had a meeting with Chinese Premier Li Qiang. Tesla reportedly wants to test Robotaxi in Shanghai. Where's the Gigafactory of the biggest EV manufacturer outside of the US? Outside of its home market, China is also Tesla's second-biggest market.

The Robotaxi is expected to be Tesla's own self-driving cab fleet. Which will give its customers the option of using it as their own vehicle or as part of a cab fleet at the same time. Speaking about Tesla's Robotaxi project during an announcement on April 23, Musk said, "Tesla will be a combination of Airbnb and Uber. At any time, they can have the car returned, like Airbnb for cars. They can decide whether they want the car to be used only by friends and family, only by 5-star users, or by anyone else at all."

In theory, Tesla plans to use the Robotaxi as a way to make money even when customers aren't using it.

The Robotaxi project could be a game-changer for Tesla. Because most other self-driving electric taxi projects have failed to take off. Robotaxi proposes an EV that will have no steering wheel or pedals. Rather, it will run through Tesla's advanced FSD.

Tesla's Robotaxi ambitions have led to the postponement of a project to launch a more affordable Model 2 electric car. However, the cost of the Robotaxi project is expected to be very high. In such a situation, the question is whether Tesla will be able to launch Robotaxi without compromising its funds.