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A brief of the breaking news that came in just as we were preparing to send out this newsletter. THE National Transportation Safety Board has launched an investigation into Waymo since his robotaxis has been spotted passing illegally stopped school buses multiple times in at least two states. Read the full story here.
Now to our regular programming…
Tesla made a few moves this week — and just before quarterly earnings came down — aimed at showing its progress, even dominance, in self-driving technology. But, hang on, there’s more to it than just visuals.
The week began with Tesla offering passengers robot rides in Austin without a human safety driver in the front seat. If you recall, Tesla launched a limited service in Austin last year with a fleet of modified Tesla Model Y vehicles that use a more advanced version of the company’s driving software, known as Full Self-Driving Supervised (that’s “unsupervised”). Human safety operators ride in the passenger seat as a traffic safety precaution.
Not all of the Tesla fleet in Austin will be driverless, and apparently there’s a chase vehicle behind those that are. Still, it’s notable and suggests that Tesla is headed for a broader upside.
Meanwhile, Tesla killed Autopilot, the advanced driver assistance system that was first introduced in its vehicles in 2014. Autopilot has gone through several software and hardware iterations over the years with new features.
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Autopilot was immediately popular and controversial, in part because the name implied that the system was more capable than it actually was. (Drivers are responsible and supposed to have their hands on the wheel when Autopilot is engaged.)
Tesla eventually made an Autopilot system standard on all of its vehicles, while launching and charging for a more robust system now known as Full Self-Driving (Supervised). The base version, now defunct, included traffic-aware cruise control, in which the vehicle maintains a set distance from cars ahead, and Autosteer, a feature that centers the vehicle in the lane and steers it.
Its decision to kill standard ADAS comes a week after Tesla said it would stop charging a one-time $8,000 fee for its FSD software and move all customers to a monthly subscription.
These decisions taken together offer a fairly simple explanation: Tesla wants to recognize more revenue from FSD 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 dealer licenses in California after a judge ruled in December that Tesla engaged in misleading marketing by overstating the capabilities of Autopilot and FSD.
The decision has been delayed for 60 days to allow Tesla to comply. Dropping the Autopilot name when redeeming FSD is a rather bold move. But maybe Tesla thinks that’s enough to satisfy the DMV.
Offers!
Ziplinethe autonomous drone delivery and logistics startup, has been around for more than a decade, starting in Rwanda, providing blood. His progress was slow and steady, scoring 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 fueled by $600 million in new funding, its expansion ambitions have grown. The company, now valued at $7.6 billion, is bringing its services to Houston and Phoenix and plans to expand to at least four more US states by 2026.
Fidelity Management & Research Company, Baillie Gifford, Valor Equity Partners and Tiger Global participated in the funding round.
Other offers that caught my eye…
ABZ innovationa European manufacturer of heavy-duty agricultural and industrial drones, raised $8.2 million in a funding 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 has raised $90 million in a Series B funding round led by Maverick Silicon — an AI-focused fund created in 2024 by hedge fund Maverick Capital.
Serve Roboticsacquired the Nvidia and Uber-backed sidewalk delivery robot company Diligent Robotics in a deal that values the common stock at $29 million. Diligent makes robots called Moxi designed to help hospitals deliver lab samples, supplies and other tasks. Note: Watch for more autonomous robotic vehicle technology crossovers in the coming year.
Terralayera German grid-scale battery storage company, raised €192 million in a round led by Eurazeo. RIVE Private Investment, Creandum, Earlybird, Norrsken VC and Picus Capital also participated.
TrueCar founder Scott Painter brought the company back to 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 CEO position.
Notable reads and other items
Austin Russellthe founder and former CEO of bankrupt lidar company Luminar, has agreed to subpoena his phone for information about the company. The subpoena is related to Luminar’s ongoing bankruptcy proceedings.
Chinese car manufacturer Geely Holding Group released it five year planand among its many goals is a section on robotics. The company said that by 2030 Cao Cao mobility The ride-hailing unit will operate a fleet of 100,000 robotaxis covering major cities in China. He also hinted at plans to expand beyond China “in the future.”
General Motors is moving production of two gas-powered vehicles away from China and Mexico and to a US plant 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. Read more to find out when the Chevy Bolt EV will end production.
Tesla aims to restart work on Dojo3, the company’s previously abandoned third-generation AI chip. Dojo3 will not be aimed at training self-driving models. Instead, CEO Elon Musk says it will be dedicated to “space-based artificial intelligence computing.”
Waymo opened the robotaxi service in Miami. Riders will be accepted on a rolling basis, with the nearly 10,000 local residents on its waiting list.
One more thing…
Alex Roywho co-hosts Autonocast with me and Ed Niedermeyer, just drove from Los Angeles to New York in a Tesla Model S, in which the vehicle’s Full Self-Driving Supervised software handled all the driving. This “Cannonball Run” route is something Roy knows. he set the transcontinental driving record in 2007 when he covered the route in 31 hours and 4 minutes. He went on to do other Cannonball Run drives in EVs. Others followed and have since surpassed these records.
According to Roy, who videotaped the entire ride, the FSD (version 14.2.2.3) drove 100% of the 3,081 mile ride. This included exiting the freeway and parking at EV chargers. The time was 58 hours, 22 minutes.
