READER REPORT: Tesla Cybercab seen in West Seattle

K September 7, 2026 (8:54 pm)

How can they have human test drivers when the car has no steering wheel or brakes or any way for the person inside controlling it?

Dash September 7, 2026 (11:58 pm)

They have them while they are testing and mapping the area with human drivers.

Also 2 of them went around my cul-de-sac yesterday morning in Federal Way.
22blades September 8, 2026 (1:00 am)

🚫 If the “Safety Driver” can’t actually intervene, I don’t want them on our streets blocking first responders, going through school zones or malfunctioning in an intersection. I figured something was up with the rush to restripe the streets lately.🚫

Dysfunction September 7, 2026 (8:59 pm)

This is great news! You can’t stop technology. Time to embrace what will be a major travel option in the near future or get left behind. Just like AI. Light rail is looking more ridiculous and obsolete with autonomous vehicle fleets being way more convenient

EVGuy September 7, 2026 (10:00 pm)

They’re cabs. Without drivers. While that does require a lot of technology, it doesn’t change the game, it just shifts liability. Visiting somewhere like Tokyo, you realize trains and light rail are the future; we’re just doing it slowly and poorly.
- Brandon September 8, 2026 (12:42 am)
  
  Those work in Japan because their infrastructure was build around it and with it in mind. Kinda like how NY subways have been around for a century and has enabled New York to sprawl to what it is today. If you want Japan, move to Japan, dont expect it to move here.
  
  We’re currently trying to import a transportation system into this region that is not compatible, hence the obvious drawbacks, price tag, and constant issues. Its like cutting out the roots of your tree and trying to transplant those from another. Thats not how you grow a tree and help it flourish; thats a science experiment doomed to fail, and we’re experiencing it.
- K September 8, 2026 (5:47 am)
  
  Who does it shift liability TO, though? Tesla’s self-driving has had a terrible safety record for years. How is the cybercab supposed to give you insurance info after it hits you going the wrong way down a street if there is no driver?
aa September 7, 2026 (10:54 pm)

My problem with many of the new technology, even back to the start of Alexa etc. is that so much of it is replacing the need for human thought and action. I don’t want or need gadgets the turn things on and off in my home. It is important that I get up and do it. I don’t want AI writing sentences for me. I want to use my brain. Many people are going to be left behind when their jobs are taken over by AI. It’s already happening. If you wonder if these things are a good idea keep in mind that Elon Musk is a proponent of reducing the human workforce.
Brig September 7, 2026 (10:55 pm)

Autonomous cars don’t solve traffic bc they’re still mostly single-passenger vehicles using public space in the least efficient way possible. The choice remains between a walkable, dense, lively, human-centric city with good public transit and unsustainable,isolating sprawl built for cars. In related news, a new study is out showing that LLMs push the ideologies of their makers, so big coincidence that you’re boosting two antisocial techs for the price of one.
- CarDriver September 8, 2026 (6:03 am)
  
  New York City fits your description of a dense city. We live in Seattle because we’re not interested in that.
  - Mike B September 8, 2026 (11:26 am)
    
    Speaking of livable, sustainable density, places like Stockholm, Boston, and Chicago are a bit denser than Seattle (~9k/mi2), nowhere near as dense as NYC (~30k/mi2) which nobody is legitimately or seriously saying Seattle should emulate, and offer a ton of great amenities. Personally, I am interested in that. Places like Kansas City and Detroit are great car-focused, non-dense places to live.
    - Julian September 8, 2026 (7:04 pm)
      
      Lol, Detroit is not a great place to live. People look at the downtown revival and don’t realize it’s a small portion of the city. The rest is downtrodden, dilapidated, and infested with crime. It severely lacks the liveliness and festive nature of a city like Seattle because so many people have left and despite being so massive, it has limited public transportation inside the city and to connect people in the suburbs to the city. There’s no sense of community or connectedness because people stay in their little hubs, from home hub to their car hub, to their destination hub, and back again. Minimal human interaction. And that’s not to mention the harsh winters. The place is terrible, but if you like it save yourself the money and move there. Cost of living is superb.
SoLongDelridge September 8, 2026 (5:03 am)

“Tell me what to do and tell me what I want!”

Definitely a dysfunction. You should have that look into or engage those brain cells a little bit.

No thanks Elon September 7, 2026 (9:03 pm)

No thank you Elon. Your politics and racial views are too toxic. I won’t ride in your cyber taxi. Would love Tesla Y, but nope, but won’t support your brand of toxicity.

___ Elon September 8, 2026 (9:03 am)

I give a pass to those who were on the Tesla train up until two years ago. But how this brand has survived at all… how a SINGLE Tesla was sold after “the salute“ and DOGE still baffles me to no end. What is wrong with people? How easily you look the other way.

N September 7, 2026 (9:17 pm)

Tests require a human driver? But this car doesn’t have a driving wheel or pedals.

WSB September 7, 2026 (9:28 pm)

I put “safety drivers” in quotes – standby drivers might be more accurate?
This page, which is linked from the city webpage linked above
https://www.seattle.gov/transportation/projects-and-programs/programs/autonomous-vehicle-testing-permit
includes “This permit requires that autonomous vehicles may only be tested in Seattle if there is a human driver in the vehicle who is monitoring and ready to take control if the need arises.”
John Sturtevant September 7, 2026 (9:42 pm)

I spend a lot of time in Austin for work. I’ve seen many autonomous vehicles and test vehicles with drivers. The test vehicles have steering and other controls.

North Admiral Cyclist September 7, 2026 (9:31 pm)

Yes, I saw two gold Cybercabs driving in tandem on Alki by the beach about a week ago. They headed toward the Lighthouse. I hope the Cybercab programers know they sent them to a healthy street . . . Then, I saw one Cybercab again today driving on the West Seattle Bridge and up Admiral. I guess West Seattle is their training ground. I have to wonder if the Cybercabs are legal to drive on Seattle’s streets or if Tesla cares.

bill September 8, 2026 (7:41 am)

Were they going the speed limit or were they in “Mad Max” mode where you can set how much to exceed the speed limit by?
–Truly the product of sociopathic libertarians.
- North Admiral Cyclist September 8, 2026 (4:37 pm)
  
  On the West Seattle Bridge, the Cybercabs were close to the speed limit. Going up Admiral, they were speeding – 10 to 15 mph over the 25mph limit.

Morgan September 7, 2026 (10:18 pm)

I’m not ready for robots is, but the comment on sunk cost of tens of billions into a light rail system that may arrive half a decade or more after this tech—anyone else ever feel that? I agree with that concern…

Sonja September 7, 2026 (10:44 pm)

These will make the West Seattle light rail completely obsolete long before it’s completed.

Churro Strength September 8, 2026 (6:11 am)

I they won’t.
Marcus September 8, 2026 (7:59 am)

Only if cybercabs follow the sound transit corridors which most people/cars leaving and entering WS do not.
- Brandon September 8, 2026 (10:15 pm)
  
  If thats the case, why do we need a train?
taylor September 8, 2026 (8:26 am)

No thanks Sonja, light rail fare being less than $5 versus what is sure to be no less than $40 to even hail one of these from WS (based on current Lyft/Uber rates) – how does this possibly make sense for large scale ridership?
22blades September 9, 2026 (5:29 am)

They carry 2 (TWO) people. This is not a mobility solution. It’s tech marketing.

SSS September 7, 2026 (11:40 pm)

I saw the cyber cab at the light by Met Market today and noticed there was someone in the drivers seat. You will be left behind if you don’t stay aware of new technology. Change Is hard but better to embrace it and learn how to live with it.

SunriseHeights September 8, 2026 (7:07 am)

Change can be hard. True. But that doesn’t mean thinking critically about change and even sometimes resisting certain forms of it means you’re change-phobic or someone who avoids hard things. We have a responsibility as humans to think about what we accept for ourselves, what it means for others, and about the short- and long-term consequences. That can ask a lot more of us than just accepting whatever “change” is being sold to us as inevitable.
- K September 8, 2026 (11:35 am)
  
  It’s crazy how we need 900 studies about the safety and environmental impact of anything that encourages densification, like the light rail or a new apartment complex. But when it’s a new technology with a really spotty safety record, that’s fine and we need to just give it time and support, because it’s a CAR.
- MazGirl September 8, 2026 (7:16 pm)
  
  Well said!

Mike September 8, 2026 (5:00 am)

Replace the Sound Transit hot mess with Autonomous EV and save billions plus actually get people to where they need to go. Cybercab would be amazing for people with mobility restrictions, like elderly, who need to get to doctor appointments safely. The epic failure after Apple Cup when thousands of people were stuck in a dead train on Sunday afternoon just shows how vulnerable it is.

WaymoRider September 8, 2026 (6:03 am)

The U.S. had 36K traffic fatalities last year… When it comes to driving, I am all for responsibly replacing humans.

WSMom September 8, 2026 (7:46 am)

My husband saw it in Gatewood last night around 7:30pm

jeff85 September 8, 2026 (7:56 am)

I’m ready for the Cybercabs and I too think technology like this could make the West Seattle light rail completely obsolete long before it’s completed. Additionally, light rails is a long term money losing service.

sigh September 8, 2026 (10:20 am)

Um, the point of a public service isn’t to make money…

Derek September 8, 2026 (8:14 am)

Ban these already. Safety hazard. Add traffic that’s unneeded when not used. Elon is a technofascist too. Gross.

Alex September 8, 2026 (8:59 am)

I am looking forward to the day I drive myself to the Costco entrance, get out, command the car to park itself, and after I am done shopping, the car returns to the entrance to pick me up and I’ll drive home. Tesla makes a lot of money licensing software to the big car companies and I have no doubt this will happen at some point in the future.

My two cents September 8, 2026 (6:14 pm)

@alex – sounds like you should just order Costco delivery.
1994 September 8, 2026 (10:03 pm)

I saw some guy do exactly what you describe at the QFC parking lot in Westwood Village. He was standing on the curb then I saw a Tesla pull up next to where he was, no driver inside, it stopped in the middle of the drive, he hopped in and drove away. The future is here.
- Jeff S September 9, 2026 (8:12 am)
  
  The future no one asked for

Blbl September 8, 2026 (9:00 am)

Fully autonomous cabs have been operating successfully in San Francisco and other cities for years. They haven’t replaced public transit. They are another (safer) alternative for people to get from point A to point B. No big deal.

Rob September 8, 2026 (9:02 am)

Think about it if you’re family is in one these cyber cabs doing 65 down the freeway an somebody some how jumps out in front, does the cab hit this person or swerve an crash killing your family.

Blbl September 8, 2026 (12:32 pm)

In that case it is much more likely than a human driver to see and successfully maneuver around any collision, avoiding injury to both.
- Rob September 8, 2026 (2:18 pm)
  
  Amen

JBN September 8, 2026 (9:08 am)

With all of the problems in the world, why are they trying to solve one that doesn’t exist? Oh yeah, money. Soulless.

Eric1 September 8, 2026 (10:02 am)

Actually people forget the one major benefit of driverless cars: No drivers. Probably a negative factor to most, except for single females needing a ride. I used to not know until my son pointed out that his young single female friends really like driverless cabs that are available in other cities – for somewhat obvious reasons. And when people talk money, it isn’t that autonomous taxis aren’t safe. It is that the new technology companies have not paid enough regulatory fees and kickbacks to the government. The government knows the economics and if given choices, a significant portion of younger riders (GenZ and Millennials) will choose robo-taxis. Until technology companies show that their fees exceeds what the government collects from the current human operated ride services, we won’t have driverless taxis. The government knows the safety factor, they just prefer money over passenger safety.

Keenan September 8, 2026 (10:12 am)

We need to get ahead of this and pass a law in the State of Washington making driverless cars illegal.

ActuallyMike September 8, 2026 (10:15 am)

Just saw one of these–good grief, they’re UGLY! Careful, King Midas will try to stick it to the wall of the Oval Office with Krazy Glue. This one did have some sort of a body behind the wheel, at least. Good grief, get ’em outta here.

WS Guy September 8, 2026 (10:32 am)

I hope my comments about AV’s making light rail obsolete have been archived. I called it years ago. The right of way, bridge and tunnels for LR would be better dedicated to AVs that can dynamically fall in line to form trains and then break apart to drop you off at your destination.

Mickymse September 8, 2026 (12:42 pm)

I never quite understand this claim that driverless cars will eliminate the need for light rail. Driverless cars are designed to replace human drivers in a taxi or van pool. They could possibly eliminate the need for you to own your own car. But they’re not designed to replace mass transit. The best benefit we could see for “the public” would be if so many people stopped using their own personal cars that we could eliminate much of the wasted space turned over for parking cars in the city and better utilize it for other things. But this won’t eliminate buses or trains. Cars—with or without drivers in them—cause traffic, and we are running out of room for them as the city grows.

The Tire of it All September 8, 2026 (12:47 pm)

How do AV proponents get around the tire pollution problem? I don’t think it’ll be a very good future if we maintain (or increase) the amount of tires polluting our waterways.

Kathy September 8, 2026 (1:08 pm)

When did I agree to become the beta tester for social media, A.I. and autonomous cars? Oh, right, I did not.

aa September 9, 2026 (7:32 am)

Driverless cars..once again Elon Musk has created a way to eliminate the need for humans. Forget light rail vs DL cars, this is job vs no job. Those of you with children, what field of study can you suggest that will still need humans in ten years? AI has been shoved into our lives, we will have a choice with these cars.

Alki Parent September 9, 2026 (6:33 pm)

I’ll never use one of these.

Terremoto September 10, 2026 (7:58 am)

I saw a Waymo going up Fauntleroy traversing the yellow line like a DWI, very slowly. Stealing jobs. All the people trying to pay rent + groceries by moonlighting as Uber + Lyft drivers will be SOL. Women can now request female drivers re:safety concerns. I will not use one of these just because the Tech Bros are trying to cru$h us (with shiny things), just like our current govt.