Investor Ross Gerber of Gerber Kawasaki has hailed Alphabet Inc.-backed (NASDAQ:GOOGL) (NASDAQ:GOOG) Robotaxi service Waymo ahead of Elon Musk-led Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA), saying the former is better at navigating Los Angeles traffic.
Can Tesla Catch Up?
In a post on X on Sunday, Gerber shared that he had been using Waymo recently to commute. The Gerber Kawasaki co-founder shared that the Robotaxis drove better than human drivers in LA.
“Interestingly they’ve trained it to avoid some difficult areas and turns where tesla tries and fails often,” he pointed out, adding that the approach results in Waymo taking the longer routes.
“Waymo solves tough LA things by avoiding them where the tesla does it and fails often,” he reiterated. The investor then said that the systems cannot be compared.
“Waymo is just way safer and better,” Gerber said, before asking if Tesla could “catch up” to the Robotaxi operator with its vision-based Full Self-Driving (FSD).
Tesla’s Robotaxi In Texas
Tesla’s Robotaxi service in Texas operates in three cities: Houston, Austin and Dallas. Combined, the EV giant had close to 69 vehicles in its fleet across the cities, but its rides are cheaper than Waymo, while also being cheaper than Uber Technologies Inc. (NYSE:UBER) and Lyft Inc. (NASDAQ:LYFT).
The EV giant’s Robotaxi ambitions also may have gotten a boost after the Texas Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Executive Director Marc Williams backed its Cybercab, calling it a “significant shift” in mobility.
However, the EV giant faces some challenges as its self-driving tech and its safety have been brought into question by the EV giant’s former data labelers and engineers, who say that they do not trust the FSD system and its safety data.
Waymo Premier, Recall
Meanwhile, Waymo recently introduced a premium subscription tier for its frequent users, which touts quicker pickup times and early access to service rollouts in new service areas.
Dubbed ‘Waymo Premier,’ the service would be available for $29.99/month and will initially roll out in areas like San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Phoenix.
Waymo also issued a recall recently for nearly 4,000 Robotaxis running its fifth-generation self-driving system due to an issue that may cause the Robotaxi to speed into construction zones on the road, according to a recent National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) filing.
According to Benzinga Edge Rankings, Tesla provides excellent Growth and Quality, while also offering a favorable price trend in the Long term.
Price Action: Tesla shares were down 0.50% at $398.50 during the after-hours session on Friday.
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