Tesla's Robotaxi To Reach Volume Production In 2024, Elon Musk Sees Unit As A Massive Growth Driver

Tesla Inc TSLA CEO Elon Musk said on Wednesday that the electric vehicle maker’s dedicated robotaxi will achieve volume production in 2024.

What Happened: The billionaire entrepreneur told analysts on a post-earnings call that Tesla is working on a new vehicle that would not have “steering wheels or pedals,” and will be a “powerful product.”

“We aspire to reach volume production of that [robotaxi] in 2024. It will be a massive driver of Tesla’s growth,” Musk told investors.

Tesla will organize a Robotaxi Day later to reveal more details, Musk said when pressed for details.

The world’s richest man on April 7 teased the robotaxi at the Cyber Rodeo event held in Giga Texas. 

See Also: Elon Musk Says Tesla Likely To Make Over 1.5M Cars This Year

Musk said the service would significantly lower the cost per mile than a subsidized bus ticket. 

Why It Matters: Although Musk has been promising a robotaxi for years now, he is now pitching it as a completely new, standalone service.

Tesla’s robotaxi endeavors will pit it against legacy rival General Motors Co’s GM self-driving taxi service Cruise and Alphabet Inc GOOG GOOGL unit Waymo.

See Also: San Francisco Cops Pulled Over A Driverless GM Cruise — What Happened Next Left Onlookers In Splits

Price Action: Tesla stock closed 4.96% lower at $977.2 a share on Wednesday, but rose 5.5% in extended trading after quarterly results.

Photo courtesy: Tesla