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A little breaking news that arrived just as we were about to send out this newsletter. THE National Transportation Safety Board opened an investigation into Waymo after its robo-taxis were spotted repeatedly illegally passing school buses stopped in at least two states. Read the full story here.
Now let’s move on to our regular programming…
Tesla made a few moves this week — and just before its quarterly earnings decline — intended to show its progress, if not dominance, in the field of automated driving technology. But wait, there’s more to it than just optics.
The week started with Tesla offering passengers robo-taxi rides in Austin without human safety driver on the front seat. If you recall, Tesla launched limited service in Austin last year with a fleet of modified Tesla Model Y vehicles running a more advanced version of the company’s driving software known as Full Self-Driving Supervised (this one being “unsupervised”). Human safety operators have occupied the front passenger seat as a precaution since deployment.
Not all of Tesla’s fleet in Austin will be entirely driverless, and there’s apparently a pursuit vehicle behind those that are. Still, this is noteworthy and suggests Tesla is moving toward a broader acceleration.
In the meantime, Tesla killed autopilotthe advanced driver assistance system that was initially introduced on its vehicles in 2014. Autopilot has gone through several software and hardware iterations over the years with new capabilities.
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Autopilot immediately became popular and controversial, in part because its name implied that the system was more capable than it actually was. (Drivers are responsible and are expected to have their hands on the wheel when Autopilot is engaged.)
Tesla eventually made a basic Autopilot system standard in all of its vehicles, while also launching and charging a more robust system now known as Fully Autonomous (Supervised) Driving. The now-dead base version included traffic-aware cruise control, in which the vehicle maintains a set distance from cars in front of it, and Autosteer, a feature that centers the vehicle in the lane and steers it.
Its decision to scrap what had been standard ADAS comes a week after Tesla announced it would stop charging a one-time $8,000 fee for FSD software and move all its customers to a monthly subscription.
These decisions, taken together, offer a fairly simple explanation: Tesla wants to recognize more FSD revenue as it positions itself as an AI and robotics company.
But there is another possible reason. The company faces a 30-day suspension of its manufacturing and distribution licenses in California after a judge ruled in December that Tesla engaged in deceptive marketing by overestimating the capabilities of the autopilot and FSD.
The decision was suspended for 60 days to allow Tesla to comply. Removing the Autopilot name while still taking advantage of FSD is a pretty bold move. But maybe Tesla thinks that’s enough to satiate the DMV.
Offers!
Ziplinethe autonomous drone delivery and logistics startup, has been around for over a decade, starting in Rwanda to deliver blood. Its progress has been slow and steady, winning victories in other African countries and expanding into the United States. This trajectory accelerated after the launch of a new drone platform in 2025, called P2, which focuses on home delivery of food and other goods.
Now powered by $600 million in new financingits expansion ambitions have increased. The company, now valued at $7.6 billion, is expanding its services to Houston and Phoenix and plans to expand to at least four more U.S. states in 2026.
Fidelity Management & Research Company, Baillie Gifford, Valor Equity Partners and Tiger Global participated in the funding round.
Other offers that caught my attention…
ABZ Innovationa European manufacturer of agricultural and heavy industrial drones, raised $8.2 million as part of a financing round led by Vsquared Ventures, with participation from Assembly Ventures and Day One Capital.
Ethernoviaa San Jose, California-based startup that makes Ethernet-based systems for autonomous vehicles, raised $90 million in a Series B funding round led by Maverick Silicon, an AI-focused fund established in 2024 by hedge fund Maverick Capital.
Serving roboticsthe sidewalk delivery robot company backed by Nvidia and Uber, acquired Diligent Robotics in a deal that values the common stock at $29 million. Diligent builds robots called Moxi, designed to help hospitals by delivering lab samples, supplies and other tasks. Note: Watch for more autonomous vehicle tech-robotics crossovers in the coming year.
Terralayera German grid-scale battery storage company, raised 192 million euros in a funding round managed by Eurazeo. RIVE Private Investment, Creandum, Earlybird, Norrsken VC and Picus Capital also participated.
TrueCar founder Scott Painter bought the company in a $227 million deal through his company Fair Holdings and partners AutoNation, PenFed Credit Union, Zurich North America and others. TrueCar will no longer be publicly traded and Painter has returned to the role of CEO.
Notable readings and other information
Austin Russellthe founder and former CEO of bankrupt lidar company Luminar, agreed accept an electronic subpoena to get information on his phone about the company. The subpoena is related to Luminar’s ongoing bankruptcy proceedings.
Chinese car manufacturer Geely Holding Group published his five-year planand among its many purposes is a section on robotaxis. The company said that by 2030, its Cao Cao Mobility The ride-hailing unit will operate a fleet of 100,000 robotaxis covering major cities in China. He also hints at plans to expand beyond China “in the future.”
General engines relocates production of two gasoline vehicles from China and Mexico to an American factory in Kansas. This change will also mean the end of the rebooted Chevrolet Bolt EV, the only vehicle currently built at the Fairfax Assembly Plant in Kansas. Learn more to find out when production of the Chevrolet Bolt EV will end.
Tesla aims to restart work on Dojo3the company previously abandoned Third generation AI chip. Dojo3 will not aim to train autonomous models. Instead, CEO Elon Musk said it would be dedicated to “spatial AI computing.”
Waymo opened its robotaxi service in Miami. Passengers will be accepted on a rolling basis, from the nearly 10,000 local residents on its waiting list.
One more thing…
Alex Roywho co-hosts the Autonocast with me and Ed Niedermeyer, just traveled from Los Angeles to New York in a Tesla Model S, in which the vehicle’s fully autonomous driving software supervised managed all driving. This “Cannonball Run” course is one that Roy knows well; he set the transcontinental driving record in 2007 by completing the route in 31 hours and 4 minutes. He went on to achieve other Cannonball Run records in electric vehicles. Others followed and have since broken these records.
According to Roy, who captured the entire route on video, the FSD (version 14.2.2.3) completed 100 percent of the 3,081-mile journey. This included exiting the highway and parking at electric vehicle charging stations. The time was 58 hours and 22 minutes.
