On Friday, Gene Munster, prominent tech analyst and co-founder at Deepwater Asset Management, said Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) CEO Elon Musk‘s caution over robotaxi accident risk appears “to be coming to an end,” predicting the company will add roughly 300 Cybercabs to its Austin fleet over the next month.
Munster was responding to a Tesla’s post on X describing Cybercab as a step toward “democratizing clean transportation for all.” He called the projected buildout “just the start.”
Tesla’s two-seat, steering-wheel-free vehicle began carrying its first paying customers this week, joining Tesla’s existing Model Y robotaxi service in Austin.
The Musk-led electric vehicle maker has described Cybercab in its latest quarterly filing as the intended “workhorse” of its robotaxi fleet.
Musk Frames Cybercab as a Cost Advantage
Munster’s forecast echoes signals Musk himself has sent. Musk teased a “Storm of Cybercabs” on X ahead of the Austin launch and separately indicated that the vehicles offer better “operational efficiency” than rival Waymo.
Federal Regulators Open Audit Query
Hours after Tesla’s Cybercab rollout event in downtown Austin, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, or NHTSA, said it opened an Audit Query to investigate Tesla’s certification that Cybercab meets all applicable Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards.
The regulator is examining the process and technical data the company relied on to show compliance with federal motor vehicle safety standards for up to 1,000 Cybercabs.
The NHTSA said the vehicles lack permanently attached, conventional manual controls, such as a brake pedal, gas pedal, steering wheel, and mirrors.
Trading Metrics
Tesla has a market capitalization of approximately $1.11 trillion. Its stock has traded between a 52-week high of $498.82 and a 52-week low of $297.38.
The stock has declined about 21% year to date.
Price Action: TSLA shares closed Friday’s regular session at $354.08, down 5.92%, according to Benzinga Pro data.
Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings show Tesla stock gaining in the short term, while its medium- and long-term trends remain negative.
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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