Elon Musk is looking to deploy Tesla's robotaxis in China, state media reports say

Kwan Wei Kevin Tan
Updated ·2 min read
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  • Tesla is planning to rollout its robotaxis in China, state-owned newspaper China Daily reported.

  • Elon Musk suggested implementing Tesla's Full Self-Driving technology in China's taxi services.

  • The EV giant said it would unveil its long-awaited robotaxis on August 8.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk is looking to to deploy his company's Full Self-Driving (FSD) technology in China's taxi services, Chinese state-owned newspaper China Daily reported on Tuesday.

The Tesla chief made a surprise visit to China last month, where he met the country's second-highest-ranking politician, Premier Li Qiang.

Musk, whose company is grappling with sluggish sales, received a critical lifeline when Chinese officials gave their in-principle approval for Tesla to roll out its FSD technology in the country, per Bloomberg.

But, according to China Daily's report, that wasn't the only thing that was discussed.

The Chinese government also gave their partial support to Musk's proposal to implement Tesla's FSD technology in the country's taxi services, the outlet reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

Representatives for Tesla didn't immediately respond to a request for comment from BI sent outside regular business hours.

Musk's bet on fully autonomous vehicles isn't that surprising considering the recent changes he's introduced to reposition the automaker as a software company.

On April 5, Musk said in an X post that Tesla would be unveiling its long-awaited robotaxi on August 8. The date was apparently chosen because the number eight is seen as an auspicious digit in Chinese culture, Musk said in a subsequent X post on April 29.

The company also seems to be paring back on its infrastructure spending as well.

Last week, Musk said he was dissolving the team behind Tesla's Supercharger charging-station network, per The Information. Tesla, Musk said, would still be growing its charger network, albeit "at a slower pace."

"We should be thought of as an AI or robotics company," Musk said in an earnings call on April 23. "If you value Tesla as just like an auto company, fundamentally, it's just the wrong framework, and if you ask the wrong question, then the right answer is impossible."

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