Ahead of earnings, Tesla's robotaxi safety reel takes aim at Waymo and Avride

Tesla just posted a highlight reel of its robotaxi driving itself through real-world chaos, and two of the clips double as a subtle flex against its biggest rivals. The footage, shared by Tesla VP of AI Ashok Elluswamy on X as "Robotaxi B-roll," shows the company's driverless cars handling stormy weather, stray pets, and pedestrians. But the most pointed moments come when Waymo and Avride vehicles get in the way. The timing is no accident: the reel dropped ahead of Tesla's third-quarter earnings call on Wednesday, and it lands as the company tries to make the public case that its robotaxi technology is safe enough to scale.

In one clip, at the 1:44 mark, a Tesla robotaxi comes to a complete stop in its own lane as a Waymo makes a wider-than-usual right turn, encroaching into Tesla's lane before returning to its own path. In another, the Tesla brakes at night for an Avride car that pulls up from the right, a little too far into its path. The message is clear: even the competition can't stay out of Tesla's way. A Waymo spokesperson did not immediately return a request for comment, and Avride's spokesperson also did not respond. But the footage speaks for itself.

The jabs are subtle, but the stakes are huge. Tesla began offering a limited number of autonomous rides without an in-car safety monitor in Austin in January, and it just announced plans to launch unsupervised Cybercabs in Dallas in November. That puts Tesla in direct competition with Waymo, which has been running driverless rides in multiple cities for years, and with Avride, a smaller player that offers robotaxi rides through Uber in Dallas and is testing with a safety driver in Austin.

The safety report Tesla published alongside the reel is where the numbers get interesting. Tesla says its robotaxi service has driven 3.3 million miles autonomously. That sounds like a lot, until you compare it to Waymo's more than 271 million miles driven as of June. That's a fraction of Waymo's total, and it explains why Tesla is leaning on qualitative footage like this reel rather than raw mileage to make its case. The report is part of a broader PR push to convince regulators and the public that Tesla's system is safe, even without a safety driver behind the wheel.

For context, Waymo has been operating commercially for years and has a head start in both miles and regulatory approvals. Tesla, by contrast, is just beginning to roll out driverless rides, and its approach relies on a different sensor stack and AI training methodology. The inclusion of rival robotaxis as "obstacles" is a clever framing: it positions the competition as just another hazard to navigate, while subtly suggesting that Tesla's system is robust enough to handle whatever the road throws at it, including other autonomous vehicles.

Avride, for its part, is a smaller player that has been quietly building its presence. It offers robotaxi rides through Uber in Dallas and is testing with a safety driver in Austin. Being featured in Tesla's safety reel as a potential obstacle is not exactly the kind of publicity Avride wants, but it does underscore how crowded the robotaxi lane is getting. Waymo, meanwhile, has been expanding aggressively, and its 271 million miles give it a data advantage that Tesla can't match overnight.

The bigger picture for executives and investors: Tesla is using every tool in its arsenal to position itself as a leader in autonomous driving, even as its mileage numbers lag. The reel is a reminder that Tesla's brand and marketing muscle can shape the narrative, but the hard data still favors Waymo. For decision-makers watching this space, the key question is whether Tesla can convert its AI expertise and manufacturing scale into a safe, scalable robotaxi service before the miles gap becomes a credibility gap.

The launch in Dallas in November will be a critical test. If Tesla's unsupervised Cybercabs perform well, the mileage numbers will start to climb, and the safety reel will look prescient. If they stumble, the reel will look like a distraction. Either way, Tesla has made it clear that it intends to compete head-on with Waymo and Avride, and it's not afraid to show the world when they get in its way.