Tesla Tries to Block Access to Public Records Ahead of Austin Robotaxi Launch

Tesla has allegedly sought to block journalists’ access to Austin’s public records concerning the company’s plans to launch robotaxis in the city later this month.

The EV maker announced in January that it aimed to launch an unsupervised Full Self-Driving (FSD) service in Austin this June. Late last month, June 12 was reported as the planned release date, though Tesla has a well-documented history of pushing back its original timelines for autonomous taxi deployments.

Specific details about the Austin rollout remain scarce, though CEO Elon Musk has said it would begin with a small fleet of 10 to 20 Model Ys. Meanwhile, robotaxi rival Waymo has been operating in the city since March.

According to Reuters, Austin’s public information officer Dan Davis, said “third parties” requested that the city withhold the records to protect their “privacy or property interests.” City officials then reportedly requested an opinion on the information request from the Texas Attorney General’s office, which handles such matters.

On April 16, a Tesla attorney filed a legal objection with the Texas Attorney General’s office, arguing that releasing the requested documents would disclose “Tesla’s deployment procedure, process, status, and strategy,” and would “irreparably harm Tesla.”

Neither Tesla nor the Texas Attorney General’s office has issued a public statement regarding the claims.

Neal Falgoust, who handles public records requests for the Austin Law Department, told Reuters the city “takes no position on the confidential nature of the information at issue,” but noted that it is required to seek an opinion from the Attorney General “when a third party asserts that their information is proprietary and should not be released.”

It’s no surprise that Tesla has to contend with this level of scrutiny from news organizations ahead of its robotaxi debut. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is currently investigating Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) functionality as a result of its involvement in multiple crashes, including one incident where an unmanned Cybertruck drove into a pole this February.

The news arrives as Tesla’s long-term prospects may increasingly depend on the success of its robotaxi strategy. The firm’s share price has hemorrhaged well over $100 billion in value since the recent war of words between Musk and President Donald Trump became widely reported early this week, with Trump threatening to roll back government subsidies for the EV giant.

About Will McCurdy

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I’m a reporter covering weekend news. Before joining PCMag in 2024, I picked up bylines in BBC News, The Guardian, The Times of London, The Daily Beast, Vice, Slate, Fast Company, The Evening Standard, The i, TechRadar, and Decrypt Media.

I’ve been a PC gamer since you had to install games from multiple CD-ROMs by hand. As a reporter, I’m passionate about the intersection of tech and human lives. I’ve covered everything from crypto scandals to the art world, as well as conspiracy theories, UK politics, and Russia and foreign affairs.

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