Tesla's Self-Driving Taxi Release Delayed: A Marketing Scam?

Tesla's Self-Driving Taxi Release Delayed: A Marketing Scam?On August 9th, Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced that the release of the self-driving taxi, originally scheduled for August 8th, has been pushed back to October 10th. Musk explained that major modifications to the self-driving cars are needed before launch

Tesla's Self-Driving Taxi Release Delayed: A Marketing Scam?

On August 9th, Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced that the release of the self-driving taxi, originally scheduled for August 8th, has been pushed back to October 10th. Musk explained that major modifications to the self-driving cars are needed before launch. However, this is not just a simple technical upgrade; it's Tesla loosening safety controls, pushing unverified technology into the market, and exploiting it to hype its stock price.

In April, Musk announced that Tesla would be launching self-driving taxis and promised to use its "Full Self-Driving" (FSD) system. But in the same month, a Tesla equipped with FSD was involved in a fatal accident. The driver, distracted by his phone, caused the accident, resulting in the death of a motorcyclist. This tragedy served as a wake-up call regarding the safety of Tesla's self-driving technology.

The delay in Musk's self-driving taxi launch is ostensibly due to technical adjustments, but it's actually a delaying tactic to mask the safety concerns surrounding its "Full Self-Driving" system. Tesla has long exaggerated the capabilities of its FSD system, using hyperbolic language like "revolutionary" to attract attention. However, the truth is that the FSD system still has significant flaws and is far from true self-driving.

Analyst Alexander Potter of investment bank PiperSandler pointed out in his report that Tesla's FSD system has gone through over 90 updates since 2017, but it has never been able to achieve full self-driving. While Musk and his supporters have vigorously promoted the FSD system on social media platform X, investors are not buying it.

Truist Securities analyst William Stein conducted two test drives of the FSD, concluding that the system is "not bad, but not useful at this point." Even more concerning, he discovered that in the second test drive, the FSD system seemed to have removed safety features, not requiring the driver to keep their hands on the steering wheel. This suggests a serious flaw in Tesla's safety monitoring, aligning with the findings of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).

NHTSA believes that Tesla's driver monitoring system is "weak" and does not prevent drivers from abusing driver-assistance functions. Stein also found that Tesla's monitoring system is ineffective at detecting whether the driver is paying attention. He turned his head completely to one side, and the car continued driving for about 20 to 40 seconds before issuing a warning.

In promoting the FSD system, Tesla has deliberately relaxed safety controls to create a false impression of "full self-driving." This disregard for safety has led drivers to become overly reliant on the FSD system, resulting in serious accidents.

The postponement of Tesla's "self-driving taxi" launch is essentially a cover-up for its immature technology and an attempt to shift the safety risk onto users. This is not just a technical issue, but also a matter of ethics and legal responsibility. Tesla should deeply reflect on the safety issues in its development of self-driving technology and take concrete measures to ensure the parallel development of technology and responsibility.

Investors should also be vigilant and not be misled by Tesla's marketing tactics and false promises. They need to rationally assess the future of self-driving technology. Currently, self-driving technology is still in its developmental stage and requires rigorous testing and verification before it can be truly applied in real-world scenarios. The delay in Tesla's "self-driving taxi" launch is a wake-up call, reminding us that while pursuing technological advancement, safety must be prioritized.

Further analysis of the Tesla self-driving taxi release delay:

• Tesla's marketing strategy: In recent years, Tesla has portrayed itself as a "disruptor" and "future leader," using various methods to hype its technological products, particularly its self-driving technology. Tesla's marketing strategy has been very successful, attracting a large number of investors and media attention, and significantly increasing its market capitalization. However, Tesla's actual technological level is far behind its hype, its FSD system has safety concerns, and Tesla is using it as a marketing tool for profit and stock price manipulation.

• Limitations of the FSD system: Tesla's FSD system is not true self-driving but a driver-assistance system. It requires drivers to remain vigilant and be prepared to take over the vehicle at any time. Tesla's promotion of the FSD system has exaggerated its capabilities, misleading it as fully self-driving to attract users and investors.

• Safety issues: Tesla's FSD system presents safety risks in real-world applications. Its monitoring system is weak and unable to effectively detect whether the driver is paying attention, leading drivers to become overly reliant on the system, resulting in accidents. In promoting the FSD system, Tesla has disregarded safety, shifting the safety risk to users.

• Lack of regulations: Currently, regulations in the field of autonomous driving are incomplete, lacking unified standards and guidelines. Companies such as Tesla are lacking effective supervision and constraints when researching and promoting self-driving technology, leading them to engage in reckless hype and disregard safety issues.

• Investors should be cautious: Investors must rationally assess the technological development level of Tesla and other self-driving technology companies when investing. They should pay attention to safety issues, avoiding being misled by marketing tactics and false promises to prevent blind investments.

Summary:

The delay in Tesla's self-driving taxi launch exposes the safety concerns with its FSD system and its lack of safety awareness in promoting the technology. This incident should serve as a warning. The development of autonomous driving technology needs to be considered alongside safety issues. Regulatory bodies should strengthen oversight of autonomous driving technology. Consumers should also be cautious about self-driving technology, avoiding blind faith to prevent safety hazards.