Musk: Tesla to Have Largest Autonomous Fleet
Elon Musk stated that he believes Tesla will maintain the "largest fleet of autonomous vehicles" for the foreseeable future. The comment comes as competitors like Waymo continue to expand their services to new cities. Musk's confidence is rooted in Tesla's large volume of consumer vehicles capable of receiving over-the-air software updates.
- Tesla's "Full Self-Driving" (FSD) is classified as a Level 2 driver-assist system, meaning the driver must remain fully attentive and ready to take control at all times. This contrasts with Level 4 or 5 autonomy, where the vehicle handles all driving in specific conditions or all conditions, respectively, without the need for human intervention. - As of late 2025, Tesla reported having 1.1 million active FSD subscriptions or purchases globally. By December of that year, vehicles with FSD (Supervised) had driven nearly 7 billion miles. - Waymo, a subsidiary of Alphabet, operates commercial robotaxi services in several U.S. cities, including Phoenix, San Francisco, and Los Angeles. As of November 2025, Waymo's fleet consisted of approximately 2,500 vehicles, providing hundreds of thousands of rides weekly. - A key technical difference between the two companies is their sensor suite; Waymo vehicles use a combination of cameras, lidar, and radar, while Tesla's approach relies solely on eight cameras. - Tesla's FSD and Autopilot systems have faced significant regulatory scrutiny. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has launched multiple investigations into crashes involving Tesla vehicles where these systems were engaged. - In January 2026, Elon Musk stated that "self-driving cars is essentially a solved problem at this point" and that Tesla had already launched its robotaxi service in several U.S. cities. However, as of February 2026, reports indicated the Austin robotaxi service had approximately 42 vehicles with low availability. - Tesla is shifting its FSD offering to a subscription-only model, phasing out the option for a one-time purchase. - Waymo continues its expansion and is planning to launch services in London in 2026. The company has also logged over 200 million fully autonomous miles on public roads as of February 2026.
