Tech
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Rani Molla

Tesla jumps while Uber and Lyft dive, as Tesla tests Robotaxis without safety drivers

Over the weekend, Tesla began testing its driverless cars without safety monitors — a move that’s sent Tesla up and competitors Uber and Lyft down as investors view it as concrete momentum toward Tesla’s autonomous future.

Even Google, which owns current autonomous taxi leader Waymo, is down slightly in early trading, though it’s unclear if the Tesla news has anything to do with it. Waymo and Tesla are widely considered to be front-runners in the autonomous driving space.

Tesla bull Dan Ives, of course, expects Tesla to win, predicting it will command about 70% of the global autonomous market over the next decade.

Tesla is testing Robotaxis in Austin without people in the front (or back)

Tesla is testing Robotaxis in Austin without people in the front (or back)

Even Google, which owns current autonomous taxi leader Waymo, is down slightly in early trading, though it’s unclear if the Tesla news has anything to do with it. Waymo and Tesla are widely considered to be front-runners in the autonomous driving space.

Tesla bull Dan Ives, of course, expects Tesla to win, predicting it will command about 70% of the global autonomous market over the next decade.

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tech
Jon Keegan

Trump administration recruiting a “US Tech Force” for two year stints in government

Months after the dismantling of DOGE, and shedding hundreds of thousands of federal workers, the Trump administration is looking to Big Tech for some expert help to “solve the federal government's most critical technological challenges.”

The “US Tech Force” is a program to recruit workers from some of the largest tech companies in the country. The deal: for two years, participating companies will supply qualifying workers to do a stint as a federal employee, working on AI, cybersecurity, and data analytics.

The federal government isn’t exactly known for paying the kinds of huge salaries that tech workers are used to, but the program will offer participants salaries between $150,000 and $200,000.

A long list of companies are listed as participants in the project, including Apple, Amazon, Microsoft, Nvidia, OpenAI, and Meta.

The website says that the the Tech Force will be non-partisan, and will be “focused exclusively on improving government technology capabilities.”

Tech Force

Tech Force

The “US Tech Force” is a program to recruit workers from some of the largest tech companies in the country. The deal: for two years, participating companies will supply qualifying workers to do a stint as a federal employee, working on AI, cybersecurity, and data analytics.

The federal government isn’t exactly known for paying the kinds of huge salaries that tech workers are used to, but the program will offer participants salaries between $150,000 and $200,000.

A long list of companies are listed as participants in the project, including Apple, Amazon, Microsoft, Nvidia, OpenAI, and Meta.

The website says that the the Tech Force will be non-partisan, and will be “focused exclusively on improving government technology capabilities.”

tech
Rani Molla

Nearly 20% of Meta’s Chinese ad revenue came from scams and other banned content: Report

Meta found that 19% of its $18 billion in ad sales in China last year came from ads for scams, illegal gambling, pornography, and other banned content, according a new report from Reuters that examined the company’s internal documents. The latest report comes on the heels of another Reuters investigation that found 10% of Meta’s global revenue last year came from such ads. Chinese advertisers represent a growing share of the company’s revenue.

To combat the situation, Meta created an anti-fraud team that briefly managed to cut back the rate of problematic ads, but after CEO Mark Zuckerberg weighed in, the group was disbanded. Fraud rates then returned to 16% of Meta’s China revenue by mid-2025.

The trove of documents, Reuters said, “reveals Meta’s efforts over that period to understand the scale of abuse on its platforms and the company’s reluctance to introduce fixes that could undermine its business and revenues.”

Meta tolerates rampant ad fraud from China to safeguard billions in revenue

Meta tolerates rampant ad fraud from China to safeguard billions in revenue

To combat the situation, Meta created an anti-fraud team that briefly managed to cut back the rate of problematic ads, but after CEO Mark Zuckerberg weighed in, the group was disbanded. Fraud rates then returned to 16% of Meta’s China revenue by mid-2025.

The trove of documents, Reuters said, “reveals Meta’s efforts over that period to understand the scale of abuse on its platforms and the company’s reluctance to introduce fixes that could undermine its business and revenues.”

David Crowther, Millie Giles, Hyunsoo Rim, Tom Jones, Claire Yubin Oh
ROAD TO SOMEWHERE
5h
A whistle-stop tour of the state of artificial intelligence

Taking stock of the winners, losers, and users of the AI revolution so far.

Surreal colorful desert with straight road heading to stunning big sun.
tech
Rani Molla

Dan Ives’ rosy predictions for Tesla

Wedbush Securities analyst and Tesla bull Dan Ives is excited for the company’s new year and next decade. To demonstrate, Ives, who says he “never viewed Tesla simply as a car company,” published a series of characteristically bold predictions today. Here’s what he thinks.

Autonomous expectations:

  • Aggressive Robotaxi expansion across the US next year, reaching 30-plus cities.

  • Volume production of Cybercabs beginning in April or May, with full-scale production of autonomous vehicles and robotics ramping later in the year.

  • Tesla will command about 70% of the global autonomous market over the next decade (a view that differs from Morgan Stanley’s).

  • Full Self-Driving penetration could rise above 50% (up from 12% now), which Ives said would “change the financial model/margins” for Tesla.

Regulatory regression:

  • Federal regulatory barriers around FSD/autonomous driving will ease significantly under President Trump, according to Ives.

  • He expects an executive order in early 2026 that would shift more authority to federal regulators and reduce state-level control over autonomous driving rules.

Financial predictions:

  • With a current ~$1.4 trillion market cap, Tesla could reach $2 trillion within the next year, with a bull case of $3 trillion by end of 2026.

  • Ives reiterated his $600 price target and “outperform” rating.

  • In a bull case scenario, he sees Tesla, now around $465, at $800 within 12 to 18 months.

tech
Rani Molla

Tesla is testing Robotaxis in Austin without people in the front (or back)

It looks like Tesla’s driverless cars are finally ditching the driver. On Sunday, eyewitnesses spotted at least two Robotaxis driving around Austin without safety monitors — the Tesla employees who’ve been stationed in the front seats since the service launched in June.

In a post on X, CEO Elon Musk confirmed that the company is testing the service “with no occupants in the car” — so no safety monitors or passengers.

The development suggests that Tesla is making progress toward its promise, announced on its last earnings call, of removing safety drivers from the ride-sharing service in “at least large parts of Austin” by year’s end. Just last week at an xAI event, Musk reiterated that timeline.

Having a truly autonomous ride-hailing service would bring Tesla closer to catching up with Google’s Waymo, which is leading the battle for the driverless future. Tesla ultimately hopes to use its autonomous tech to turn much of its existing fleet into driverless cars and quickly scale its Robotaxi service — a move that would help prove itself to be an AI company rather than just a car company.

Always ahead of the curve, Musk last week told a Google executive that “Waymo never really had a chance against Tesla.”

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