Tesla Expands Austin Cybercab Fleet to 169 Vehicles Amid Early Operational Challenges

Tesla has expanded its authorized commercial Cybercab fleet in Texas from 45 to 169 vehicles within one month of launch, despite facing early operational hurdles and regulatory scrutiny. Active vehicle counts grew rapidly from 58 on September 21 to 125 on September 25. Passengers in Austin have reported long wait times, routing errors, and mechanical door glitches, while the NHTSA opened an audit query into the vehicle's lack of manual controls. The expansion targets competition from Alphabet's Waymo as Tesla shares remain down 18% year-to-date.