Austin Robotaxi Now Runs 6 a.m. to 12 a.m. as FSD v15 Nears 24/7

Austin Robotaxi Now Runs 6 a.m. to 12 a.m. as FSD v15 Nears 24/7

Tesla has extended operating hours for its Robotaxi service in Austin again. Rides are now available until midnight, bringing the daily window to 6 a.m. through 12 a.m., as @ethanmckanna noted on X.

The Robotaxi app is also alerting riders about the update, stating that rides are now available until midnight (via @aaronjcash).

Robotaxi Hours Keep Creeping Later

This change follows a series of incremental extensions. In August, hours were expanded to run from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. About two weeks ago, the cutoff moved to 11 p.m. while more than 100 Cybercabs were added to the Austin fleet, which now numbers 300+ with rides expected to open in Dallas next.

The long-term target is uninterrupted 24/7 service. Tesla VP of AI Ashok Elluswamy has said FSD v15 will unlock round-the-clock Robotaxi operations, with a fleet-wide rollout to Robotaxi vehicles targeted for this month. FSD v15 is a 10x parameter upgrade, increasing the neural network to about 10 billion parameters from roughly one billion. As @ethanmckanna put it, “Seems like 24/7 isn’t far away.”

What’s Standing in the Way of 24/7?

Nighttime driving remains the primary obstacle. Musk said earlier this month that the main thing Tesla is trying to solve is avoiding pets that are hard to see at night, describing the challenge as spotting “grey kittens on grey tarmac in the dark.” Incremental hour-by-hour extensions suggest Tesla is easing into later operations while addressing this issue.

The Robotaxi program is also facing federal scrutiny. NHTSA recently opened an inquiry into claims that Robotaxis sped through active school zones, covering about 1,000 Model Y and Cybercab vehicles. None of the four incidents identified involved a crash or injury, and the agency has not yet decided whether to open a formal investigation.

With service now ending at midnight, a six-hour overnight gap remains before true 24/7 availability. Whether that gap closes this month will likely depend on when FSD v15 reaches the Robotaxi fleet.