A mannequin simulating a child crossing the street to board a school bus was crushed over and over again by a Tesla equipped with a self-driving feature on Thursday—safety advocates' latest warning of weaknesses in the automaker's tech as it prepares to launch robotaxis on Austin roads.

For nearly a decade, a Central Texas community has waited with baited breath to see if they would one day welcome an H-E-B.

Musk said in a social media post this week that Tesla’s long-awaited robotaxi service will roll onto the streets of Austin, Texas on June 22. The Tesla CEO is betting the company’s future on autonomous vehicles (AV) and a robotaxi service – which will hopefully inject much-needed cash just as the company’s sales and profits are slumping.

The timing for the Austin, Texas launch could change as Tesla is being “super paranoid about safety,” Elon Musk said.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced that the Tesla robotaxi service is set to “tentatively” launch in Austin, Texas on June 22 in an X post Tuesday. He said the company plans to begin offering rides to the public on the self-driving robotaxis this month,

Even as Tesla deliveries plunged nationally this year amid Elon Musk's very visible (if short-lived) alliance with President Trump, there was at least one state where Tesla registrations were up: Texas.

Some Texans weren't perturbed by Tesla's growing unpopularity earlier this year, as registrations of Tesla EVs saw a boost in Texas. According to registration data Axios obtained through public information requests,

With Tesla just days away from a planned rollout of its paid robotaxi service in Austin, the electric vehicle manufacturer is reportedly trying to prevent city officials from releasing records related to its robotaxi trial period.