Photo source: Hintsa Performance
Tesla shares surged on Monday following reports that President-elect Donald Trump’s transition team intends to prioritise the establishment of a federal framework for regulating self-driving vehicles within the U.S. Department of Transportation.
The stock closed with an increase of over 5%, spurred by a Bloomberg News article citing anonymous sources familiar with the discussions.
Elon Musk has played a pivotal role in advocating for Trump’s return to the presidency in the lead-up to this month’s elections. The tech entrepreneur stands to gain from his close ties with Trump, who previously served as president from 2017 to 2021.
Recently, Trump appointed Musk and former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy to co-lead the newly established Department of Government Efficiency, abbreviated as “DOGE.” Trump stated that this department aims to eliminate government “bureaucracy,” ease “excess” regulations, and reduce “wasteful” spending.
The introduction of a federal regulatory framework for self-driving vehicles would significantly benefit Tesla, which has long promised fully autonomous cars but has yet to produce a vehicle capable of operating without human intervention.
Musk envisions a future where Tesla’s fleet consists of robotaxis—fully autonomous vehicles that transport passengers without any human oversight.
Last month, Musk launched Tesla’s much-anticipated robotaxi, named the “Cybercab.” This concept vehicle is a two-seater priced at approximately $30,000, notably lacking both steering wheels and pedals.
Tesla faces competition in the robotaxi sector from Google’s Waymo, which is among the few companies that have successfully deployed self-driving cars on public roads.
During an event showcasing the Cybercab and Tesla’s “Robovan,” Musk expressed optimism about launching “unsupervised” Full Self-Driving (FSD) technology in Texas and California next year, specifically in the Model 3 and Model Y electric vehicles. Currently, FSD is available in a “supervised” version, which requires a human driver to remain alert and ready to take control at any moment.
As reported by Bloomberg, Trump’s transition team is actively seeking policy leaders for the Transportation Department to help develop this federal regulatory framework for self-driving vehicles. Potential candidates include Emil Michael, a former executive at Uber, along with Republican Representatives Sam Graves from Missouri and Garret Graves from Louisiana, who are not related.