Tesla introduces Robovan: Features and capabilities

Robovan has retro-futuristic appearance similar to bus from The Jetsons and a toaster from 1950s
An undated prototype image showing Robovan. — Tesla
An undated prototype image showing Robovan. — Tesla

Tesla’s CEO Elon Musk revealed a prototype of the first fully driverless vehicle — Tesla’s Robovan — on Thursday night during the company’s "We, Robot" event in Los Angeles, California.

According to Musk, the Robovan will be an electric, autonomous vehicle roughly the size of a bus, planned to be developed for transporting people around high-density areas. It will carry up to 20 people at a time and also transport goods.

Musk while talking to the attendees during the event stated: “We’re going to make this, and it’s going to look like that.”

Read more: Tesla expected to launch six-seat Model Y in 2025 all over China — Reports

However, Musk didn’t indicate how much the Robovan would cost, how Tesla would produce it, or when it would be launched. 

Tesla’s Robovan features

The Robovan has a retro-futuristic appearance similar to a bus from The Jetsons and a toaster from the 1950s. It boasts silver metallic sides with black details, and strips of light running parallel to the ground along its sides, with doors that slide out from the middle. Meanwhile, there is no steering wheel, since it’s autonomous.

Moreover, Musk said: “One of the things we want to do – and we’ve done this with the Cybertruck – is we want to change the look of the roads.”

“The future should look like the future,” he added. It looks relatable to other purpose-built robotaxis, like those developed by Zoox and Cruise.