August 17, 2026 - 10:33 am

Tesla asked the state to operate a fleet of up to 5,000 robotaxis in Southern Nevada in an application this summer with the Nevada Transportation Authority.

It got 10.

The NTA approved the heavily scaled-down permit application on July 27 after Tesla sought the brigade-sized robotaxi fleet in June, according to NTA records. Amazon-owned Zoox, which kicked off paid Las Vegas robotaxis last week, is allowed to have a fleet of up to 100 vehicles.

The NTA didn’t give any guidance to why Tesla was only approved for 10 vehicles in its robotaxi fleet, according to agency spokesperson Teri Williams. Tesla didn’t respond to a request for comment on its Las Vegas robotaxi permit approval.

The permit notes that the robotaxis must be clearly marked as robotaxis, can’t exceed 45 mph, can only operate in a designated geofenced area and can’t pick up or drop off customers within a quarter mile of Harry Reid International Airport without the approval of the Clark County Department of Aviation.

Tesla’s robotaxi service allows for driverless operations, but must also include human supervision, and the company must report any crash, security incident, system failure, communication or data interruption or any occasion when a robotaxi becomes disabled, within five working days the incident.

Ahead of the potential launch of its robotaxi service, the Elon Musk-owned company is spending $3.1 million to retrofit a 37,000-square-foot industrial building in the southwest valley with six car lifts and eight vehicle superchargers. Tesla also provides administrative and support services out of a building downtown, according to a Clark County business license. Tesla has also been actively hiring for positions in Las Vegas tied to its robotaxi service.

Tesla has been driving the robotaxis around the Las Vegas Valley in recent months ahead of a potential launch of passenger service. The Tesla vehicles are gold and clearly marked as robotaxis.

Contact Mick Akers at makers@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2920. Follow @mickakers on X.