Tesla falls 6% as investors weigh robotaxi developments

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) ended the trading day on Thursday with a decline of 5.65% to $210.66 on a down day overall for the market ahead of the Federal Reserve symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Shares of Tesla (TSLA) closed at their lowest point of the week.

Some traders are also pointing to a new investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board into an accident involving one of Tesla’s (TSLA) electric semi trucks. The crash caused the EV semi’s battery to catch fire, and causing a full closure of a freeway in California through the evening.

Robotaxi developments are also very much in the mix. Earlier in the week, Waymo confirmed that the autonomous vehicle specialist has surpassed 100,000 trips per week. The trip volume is double what Waymo reported in May. Chief Product Officer Saswat Panigrahi said Waymo hit the milestone by scaling deliberately, optimizing costs, and delivering a strong consumer experience. “We look forward to bringing the benefits of full autonomy to more people in the future,” stated Panigrahi.

Late on Thursday, Uber Technologies (UBER) on Thursday announced a multiyear strategic partnership to bring General Motors’ (GM) Cruise autonomous vehicles to the ride-sharing company’s platform.

For its part, Tesla (TSLA) has a major robotaxi event scheduled for October 10, which some analysts think could redefine the company with investors as a bet on autonomous driving and AI upside.