Tesla CEO Elon Musk has been fervent in his support for former President Donald Trump in the 2024 election, formally endorsing him in a post on X, the social media platform he owns, committing millions of dollars to Trump’s campaign, and even joining the former president on the campaign trail. Needless to say, Musk is all in.
As such, it’s logical to assume that the tech billionaire wasn’t all that pleased to see Trump question self-driving cars, a cornerstone of Tesla, on Thursday. The timing also didn’t help.
“Does anybody like an autonomous vehicle?” In a speech in Detroit on Thursday, Trump vowed to keep “Chinese-produced autonomous vehicles” off American roads. Notably, this is an effort that’s already been undertaken by the Biden Administration, which proposed banning Chinese software and hardware in connected vehicles in September.
Trump didn’t only target Chinese self-driving cars in his speech, though. He went on to ask the audience if anyone liked autonomous cars.
“Does anybody like an autonomous vehicle?” Trump asked. “Some people do, [but] I don’t know. It’s a little concerning to me.”
The timing. Trump made his comments hours before Musk unveiled Tesla’s new Cybercab and Cybervan, which the company presented as part of its vision of a “fun, exciting future.” The announcement was years overdue, although that’s unsurprising considering the Tesla CEO’s notorious reputation for missing deadlines. Musk said he expects Cybercab, a sleek and futuristic-looking vehicle with no pedals or steering wheel, to begin production in 2026, although it could be as late as 2027.
At the event, dubbed “We, Robot,” Musk also claimed that Tesla would fully launch autonomous driving in Texas and California next year. While the company offers a “Full Self-Driving” autopilot system, the name is misleading given that the system still requires the driver to maintain their hands on the wheel.
“This is a very big deal,” Musk said at the event. “It’ll save lives, a lot of lives, and prevent injuries.”
This isn’t the first time Trump has expressed concerns about self-driving cars. Although Trump’s comments might seem surprising, especially when you consider Musk’s support, this isn’t the first time the former president has expressed doubts about autonomous vehicles.
Back in 2019, Axios reported that Trump, who was still president at the time, had privately told people that the autonomous vehicle revolution was “crazy,” adding that he would never let a computer drive him around. Notably, the outlet pointed out that the Trump didn’t seem to be letting his views influence policy decisions. In fact, his administration removed barriers to encourage the development of self-driving cars.
Currently, Mercedes is the only manufacturer authorized to sell self-driving cars that don’t require constant supervision from the driver directly to consumers in the U.S. This is known as the SAE “level 3” of driving automation.
Musk’s response. Trump’s comment about self-driving cars could simply represent a passing thought on a subject, rather than indicate a plan to take American autonomous vehicles off the road, too. The wild card here is Musk.
The Tesla CEO is famously mercurial and has been known to turn on people at the drop of a hat in the past. One of the most recent examples is Twitter, which Musk has renamed as X. Initially, Musk supported Twitter safety chief Yoel Roth. After Roth left the company, Musk falsely parroted the narrative that his former employee, who is gay, was in favor of sexualizing children.
Musk’s actions lead to a barrage of harassment against Roth, who eventually had to leave his home in light of escalating threats against him.
So far, Musk hasn’t responded to Trump’s comments about self-driving cars, though he’s brushed off stances from the former president that have been contrary to his interests in the past. Only time, and X, will tell if anything changes.
Image | Trump White House Archived | Tesla
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