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Tesla finally launches ‘Robotaxi’ app on Android, nearly a year after iOS

Tesla has released its “Robotaxi” app on the Google Play Store, making the ride-hailing service available to Android users for the first time. The iOS version launched in September 2025 — putting the Android release nearly a year behind.

The app arrived on April 24, just days after Tesla “expanded” its “Robotaxi” service from Austin to Dallas and Houston.

What the app offers

The Tesla Robotaxi app allows users to request a ride from Tesla’s fleet of specially configured Model Y vehicles. Once a ride is confirmed, the app displays the license plate of the approaching vehicle.

After entering the car, riders can use the app to adjust climate controls and seat positioning, play music, monitor trip progress, modify the drop-off location, or request the vehicle to pull over. The Android version includes Google Pay integration for payment.

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The app is free to download and is available in over 25 languages. It is currently limited to the United States.

Service is still limited to three Texas cities

Tesla’s “Robotaxi” service currently operates in Austin, Dallas, and Houston. The Dallas and Houston launches came with tiny geofences — Houston’s zone covers roughly 12 to 15 square miles in the Jersey Village and Willowbrook areas, while Dallas gets about 30 to 35 square miles.

The fleet remains small. Crowdsourced data showed Tesla deployed just one vehicle in each new city at launch, with a second added shortly after. In Austin, where the service has operated since June 2025, roughly 40 vehicles are active — but only about a dozen operate fully driverless. The vast majority still have human safety monitors in the front seat.

Tesla had planned to expand to eight US cities but has delayed five of them, with those cities now listed as “preparations underway” rather than showing specific timelines.

For comparison, Waymo operates in 10 US cities with approximately 3,000 vehicles and delivers over 500,000 fully driverless rides per week — no safety monitors, no chase cars, 24 hours a day. Waymo has been operating in Dallas and Houston since February 2026, two months before Tesla arrived.

It’s also technically available in the Bay Area in California, but it is a “robotaxi” service in name only there as Tesla never applied for an autonomous driving license and therefore, it hires drivers who suppervise vehicles on FSD.

Pricing

Based on available data, Tesla’s “Robotaxi” pricing in Dallas runs at a $3.00 base fare plus $1.40 per mile. Austin pricing is $3.25 base plus $1.00 per mile. The service operates daily starting at 6 a.m.

Electrek’s Take

Now Android users can also experience the long wait times and limited availability of Tesla’s “Robotaxi” service. Tesla is barely operating this fleet — a handful of vehicles in three Texas cities, most of them still with human safety monitors in the driver’s seat. This is not a robotaxi service in any meaningful sense. It’s a marketing exercise designed to justify Tesla’s valuation as an “autonomy company” rather than an automaker with declining vehicle sales.

Meanwhile, Waymo is running 500,000 fully driverless rides per week across 10 cities with zero human intervention. The gap between the two is not closing — it’s widening.

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Avatar for Fred Lambert Fred Lambert

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