Tesla shares rose sharply on June 23, closing at a three-week high of $349, up 8.23% . The industry believes Tesla’s high-profile self-driving taxi, Robotaxi, has made its debut, sparking enthusiasm from market bulls.
On June 22, local time, Tesla’s long-awaited self-driving taxi Robotaxi made its official debut in Austin, Texas. The market sees this as a key step in proving the technology, which CEO Elon Musk has seen for years as a key driver of high valuations. It is the first time its vehicles have carried paying passengers without a human driver, and the services are available in a limited area for a flat fee of $4.20, Reuters reported.
However, Tesla only initially deployed about 10 vehicles on Robotaxi’s first day of operation, and the taxi service is only open to a select number of invited social media celebrities, with limited range. Still, initial feedback from users was positive, allaying concerns that the service could be delayed again.
Dan Ives, a Tesla Bull and Wade Bush Securities Analyst, took a test ride on Robotaxi and said it exceeded his expectations. According to CNBC, Dan Ives has the highest price target on Wall Street for Tesla.
In addition, Cathy Wood, a wall street star investor and “Sister Wood”, predicts that Tesla’s Robotaxi business will be scaled up by the 2029, revenues from self-driving ride-hailing services could provide up to $951bn in business opportunities for Tesla. (Wen Hui)