Tesla’s robotaxi plans for Nevada move forward with testing permit

Tesla has secured a new permit from the Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV), allowing the company to begin testing its autonomous vehicle technology on public roads in the state. The permit, first reported by Tesla influencer Sawyer Merritt, comes just two months after CEO Elon Musk outlined ambitions to expand Tesla’s self-driving efforts beyond Austin into additional markets.

“We are expecting to greatly increase the service area to well in excess of what competitors are doing, hopefully in a week or two. We are getting the regulatory permission to launch in the Bay Area, Nevada, Arizona, Florida, and a number of other places,” Musk said during Tesla’s Q2 earnings call on July 23. “As we get the approvals and prove out safety, we will be launching the autonomous ride-hailing across most of the country. I think we will probably have autonomous ride-hailing in probably half the population of the U.S. by the end of the year. That’s at least our goal, subject to regulatory approvals.”

Earlier this summer, Tesla began offering driverless rides in Model Y SUVs in Austin. The pilot robotaxi service, which includes a Tesla employee seated in the front passenger seat, first launched in South Austin and has since expanded across more parts of the city.

Compared to California, entering Nevada’s testing environment is relatively straightforward. To operate, Tesla and other companies must file a testing registry permit form, which the DMV reviews before issuing a Certificate of Compliance and red license plates for the listed vehicles. Tesla has now received that certification, according to Merritt.

The Nevada DMV confirmed Tesla submitted its paperwork on September 3, which was processed by its Office of Business Licensing on Wednesday. DMV spokesperson Hailey Foster clarified that Tesla is currently authorized to test but not yet deploy autonomous vehicles commercially. “Tesla will still need to complete the self-certification for operations process to be able to rollout with an entire program, i.e. Robotaxi,” she said.

Under state rules, companies testing autonomous vehicles must show proof of $5 million in insurance coverage. Any traffic incidents must be reported to the DMV within 10 days.

Nevada has established itself as one of the most autonomous vehicle–friendly states in the U.S., attracting companies to test their self-driving technology. Motional and Lyft operated on Las Vegas streets for years, while Nuro set up a closed test track.

Meanwhile, Zoox has become closely associated with Las Vegas thanks to its distinctive, cube-shaped robotaxis. Earlier this week, Zoox announced that its service is now open to the public, though rides will remain free until regulators grant approval to charge passengers.

If Tesla intends to launch a commercial robotaxi network in Nevada, it will still need approval from the Nevada Transportation Authority to operate as an autonomous vehicle network company.

This article has been updated to include comments from the Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles.