Tesla To Start 'More Affordable' Model EV Production This Year; Elon Musk Announces Paid Robotaxi Rides To Launch In Austin

Tesla, at its fourth-quarter earnings call Wednesday, reported earnings per share of $0.73 and revenue of $25.7 billion, falling short of Wall Street’s estimates. Despite this, the stock rose 3% in after-hours trading due to the company’s commitment to returning to growth in 2025, with plans to launch a robotaxi business and produce more affordable electric vehicle models.

CEO Elon Musk announced that paid, unsupervised full-self-driving(Unsupervised FSD) rides are expected to launch in June in Austin, with the service expanding to California by the end of the year.

In his remarks, Musk discussed the company’s plans for autonomous vehicle technology and the production of cybercab. The company’s purpose-built robotaxi is scheduled to enter volume production in 2026, with fleet-testing of existing models happening later this year.

Tesla also confirmed that production of more affordable models is on track to begin in the first half of 2025, which is expected to boost sales, with a potential price tag of under $30,000.