Ex-Waymo CEO is not impressed by Tesla’s Robotaxi

Tesla showed prototypes of its Cybercab on Thursday. 

It seems former Waymo CEO John Krafcik was unimpressed by Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s much-hyped “We, Robot” event.

Musk revealed a fleet of prototype Robotaxis — officially called the Cybercab — on Thursday night to a crowd at Warner Bros. Discovery’s film studio in Burbank, California.

Musk rode in one of the prototypes before sharing a few details, including that Tesla had manufactured at least 20 Cybercabs and that the vehicles would be in production before 2027. Alongside the Robotaxi, Tesla also showed off a 20-passenger Robovan and its Optimus humanoid robots.

But Musk’s attempt to drum up hype around his products fell flat with Krafcik, as well as some Tesla investors. Tesla shares fell as much as 10% in early trading on Friday.

Waymo and Tesla are battling to become the top authority in autonomous driving technology. Krafcik stepped down from his Waymo role in 2021 but has remained in the EV industry. He now serves on Rivian’s board of directors.

Tesla’s Robovan was shown off at the company’s “We, Robot” event.

Krafcik compared Musk to former President Donald Trump in an emailed statement to B-17.

“Remember, back in 2016, when Donald Trump said: ‘I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody, and I wouldn’t lose any voters, OK?'” Krafcik wrote. “The event last night was the automotive industry version of that, with the CEO of Tesla playing Donald Trump.”

He added: “If a company were serious about building a safe and accessible Robotaxi business, it would look nothing like what was shown, or said, last night.”

Krafcik said that Tesla could face hurdles before mass-producing the Robotaxi for public use. Phil Koopman, an autonomous vehicle safety expert, told B-17 that Tesla will need to get permission from the federal government to mass-produce and sell a vehicle without a steering wheel or pedals.

Krafcik also said the Robotaxi’s seats appeared low to the ground, which could make it difficult for elderly passengers and people with disabilities.

“Serious Robotaxi companies like Waymo use taller vehicle forms and have high-mounted sensors to improve accessibility, comfort and safety — this vehicle form compromises all of these attributes,” Krafcik told B-17.

Representatives for Tesla did not respond to a request for comment from B-17.

John Krafcik is the former CEO of Waymo. 

Musk’s presentation also failed to impress some Wall Street analysts.

An analyst at investment banking company Morgan Stanley called the event “disappointing” for its lack of details.

“We were overall disappointed with the substance and detail of the presentation. As such, we anticipate TSLA to be under pressure following the event,” the firm’s analyst said in a statement.

Wedbush analysts praised Tesla’s presentation — saying it was a “glimpse of the future of Tesla and next generation transportation for consumers” — but agreed there was a noticeable lack of details.

“This morning, investors and the bears are negatively piling on asking where are the details? We totally agree that ideally Musk and Tesla should have spent more time on details around this strategic autonomous vision, and that will naturally weigh on shares this morning as a knee-jerk reaction,” Wedbush analysts said.

Some analysts noted that Musk did not expand on Tesla’s plan for a cheaper EV during the event.

Gene Munster of Deepwater Asset Management said in an X post that an affordable EV “was Elon’s ‘A’ topic from the last earnings call, where he mentioned the start of production as early to mid-2025… or maybe even late 2024.”

“My sense is that the car is still on the roadmap for sometime late in 2025, but the company decided not to discuss it, as it would have triggered the Osborne Effect, causing Model 3 buyers to hold off,” he wrote.

Musk teased Tesla Robotaxis in 2019. At the time, he claimed Tesla would have one million Robotaxis on the road by 2020, but Musk has a reputation for overly optimistic deadlines.

“Punctuality is not my strong suit, but I always come through in the end,” he said during a 2020 earnings call.