Tesla’s Texas robotaxi registrations pass 500 as Cybercab count surges
The state had 546 registered Model Y Robotaxis and Cybercabs by Sept. 26, while sightings raised questions about a possible Houston deployment.
Tesla had registered 546 vehicles for autonomous ride-hailing in Texas as of Sept. 26, comprising 420 Model Y Robotaxis and 126 Cybercabs. The count cleared 500 after Cybercab registrations rose sharply over a matter of days.
Tesla Oracle, which reported the figures, found that Texas had 69 registered Cybercabs on Sept. 24. That total then rose by 57 vehicles to 126. The publication’s registration chart showed sudden fleet growth over the preceding days.
Most of Tesla’s operating Texas fleet was working in Austin, where the company has its largest geofenced autonomous ride-hailing area. The registrations should not be read as a count of vehicles carrying passengers: as covered in September, sightings-based tracking put Tesla’s active Austin passenger fleet at eight vehicles in the week through Sept. 22, despite hundreds of autonomous-vehicle registrations in the state.
The increase was presented as a sign of Tesla’s confidence in deploying Unsupervised Full Self-Driving within a large geofenced area. Tesla produces both Cybercabs and Model Y Robotaxis at Giga Texas, and the plant’s proximity to Austin was described as easing deployment in the city and elsewhere in the state.
Houston may be a future destination, but the evidence remains limited to sightings. A large number of Cybercabs were recently seen there, prompting speculation that Tesla could enlarge its small local geofence and launch Cybercabs in the city in the near term. No Houston service launch or operating fleet count was reported.
The 420 Model Y registration total also attracted attention because it matched the figure in Elon Musk’s historic tweet, “taking Tesla private at $420. Funding secured.” The registration number was used by Tesla supporters to taunt critics online, according to the report.