Tesla expands robotaxi service to Dallas and Houston

Tesla is expanding its robotaxi service—defined as an autonomous vehicle ride-hailing service—to Dallas and Houston. The move marks an expansion of the company’s driverless operations, bringing its total service area to three cities, all of which are located in Texas. The company announced the launch via a social media post, stating, “Robotaxi is now rolling out in Dallas & Houston 🤠”. Accompanying the announcement was a 14-second video showing Tesla vehicles driving without human monitors or drivers in the front seat. This expansion represents a key step in Tesla’s efforts to scale its driverless ride-hailing footprint.

The expansion builds on Tesla’s existing operations in Austin, where the company launched its service last year. Following that initial launch, Tesla started offering rides without safety drivers—human operators present in autonomous vehicles for safety monitoring—in January 2026. Outside of Texas, Tesla’s autonomous operations remain limited; the company offers a more limited ride service with human drivers in the San Francisco Bay Area. This geographic concentration highlights Texas as the primary testing ground for Tesla’s fully driverless commercial efforts.

However, early data suggests that Tesla may not be running many vehicles in either of these new markets yet. According to crowdsourced data on the Robotaxi Tracker website, only a single vehicle has been registered in Dallas, and a single vehicle has been registered in Houston. This stands in contrast to the company’s established operations in Austin, where the Robotaxi Tracker website has logged 46 active vehicles. The low vehicle counts in Dallas and Houston suggest that the initial rollout in these cities may be in its very early stages.

The decision to expand to Dallas and Houston also comes as the company faces continued scrutiny over the safety of its autonomous driving technology. In a February filing, Tesla disclosed that Austin robotaxis have been involved in 14 crashes since launch. This safety data highlights the operational hurdles facing autonomous vehicle ride-hailing services as they attempt to scale their driverless fleets beyond initial testing grounds.

Why it matters

Tesla’s expansion into Dallas and Houston signals a push to scale its autonomous ride-hailing footprint in Texas, even as the company faces scrutiny over safety data from its existing operations in Austin.