The most noticeable novelty for anyone stepping foot inside the two-seat interior is the rather unnerving absence of any visible control mechanisms, such as a steering column, gas or brake pedals — things one expects to see in anything on four wheels, even existing self-driving rides like those from Waymo.
This can not only be disconcerting to those hailing one of these new machines, but also for local police and government agencies. Authorities still aren’t quite sure if the Cybercab meets legal standards, despite the first fleet of 45 already navigating Austin, Texas after a September 4 kickoff.
Since that date, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has launched a probe into whether the model is as suitable for public use as Tesla says it is, given that it lacks the abovementioned features, and also, notably, the LiDAR or radar sensors used by competitors. Instead, the Cybercab uses only cameras and AI to assess surroundings and find its way around.
The looming fate of Cybercabs
The query will determine the integrity of Tesla’s testing and self-certification. If it turns out that the vehicle falls short of any guidelines — namely crash avoidance criteria that governs controls, displays, braking systems, acceleration systems and more — the company could face steep fines, enforced quality monitoring and/or directives to go back to the drawing board and update the design.
“NHTSA fully supports the safe development and deployment of automated vehicles,” the organization said in a statement on the matter. “But as the federal regulator, we need to ensure that all of our laws are followed.”
The NHTSA also added that a key aspect of its investigation is how much the certification “depended on determinations that certain Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards are inapplicable to the Cybercab,” e.g., the steering, brake and acceleration controls.
Even in existing self-driving rides, such as those from Waymo, a steering wheel provides a semblance of familiarity and perceived safety, even if the controls are unnecessary and can’t be overridden by a human passenger.
As one Waymo executive told CNBC after the Alphabet-owned firm rolled out a new model of robotaxis, “having the steering wheel and the pedals up there” helps riders get “over that hump of trying something new.”
What else the Cybercab has (and doesn’t have) that sets it apart
