Tesla's robotaxi service in Austin, Texas has been involved in 14 collisions since it launched in June 2025, CBS News reported on February 17, 2026, based on crash data filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
Five of the crashes took place in December 2025 and January 2026 and produced property damage without reported injuries. Two earlier crashes, one in July and one in October 2025, resulted in minor injuries. The service began as a pilot program limited to selected riders in Model Y vehicles and later opened to the general public through Tesla's app.
Federal rules require manufacturers of vehicles with automated driving systems to submit crash data to NHTSA. The agency can remove vehicles from the road if it identifies a safety defect. Within weeks of the Austin launch, NHTSA began looking into videos of robotaxis driving on the wrong side of the road and braking suddenly.
Analyst Dan Ives of Wedbush said Tesla planned robotaxi launches in seven U.S. cities in the first half of 2026 and expansion to half of all U.S. states by the end of the year. CEO Elon Musk has said Tesla is moving into a future based on autonomy and plans to build Cybercabs in volumes that exceed all of its other vehicles combined.
CBS News also noted the record of a competitor. Waymo recalled more than 1,200 driverless vehicles over software that caused collisions with barriers, and a Waymo vehicle struck a child in Santa Monica at about 6 mph after slowing from roughly 17 mph.
Source: CBS News - https://www.cbsnews.com/news/tesla-robotaxi-austin-14-crashes-nhtsa/