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I'm surprised they want to associate with the word "taxi" in the first place. Doesn't that cut through the hype bullshit supporting their stock price by admitt

I'm surprised they want to associate with the word "taxi" in the first place. Doesn't that cut through the hype bullshit supporting their stock price by admitting that they're gunning for the taxi industry, which is fundamentally low margins, geographically limited and overall niche? Even if they capture the entire global taxi market, that couldn't justify their present market cap (which as far as I can tell is supported by delusional investors who think these robotaxis will replace individual car ownership completely in a way that taxis obviously never will.)

mindslight 1y ago
The thing about bullshit artists is they can always generate more bullshit. Tesla stock marketing hype is not some fixed quantity that needs to be conserved. Rather, creating more is squarely in Muskov's wheelhouse.
dhosek 1y ago
Yeah, one of the problems with eliminating individual car ownership (which I think is a good idea) is the fact that cars are more than point A to point B transportation options. They also serve as temporary storage units (the case that springs to mind is keeping my guitar and amp in the trunk of my car while I’m at work to get to an afterwork rehearsal, but a less niche case is a shopping trip to multiple stores where the goods purchased along the way are kept in the car at each subsequent stop). And then there’s the case of special configurations, e.g., car seats for those with young children, wheelchair access, etc. Even once FSD gets solved (if it ever does), these use cases also need to be accounted for as well.
- netsharc 1y ago
  > Even once FSD gets solved (if it ever does), these use cases also need to be accounted for as well. But these are such easy issues to solve. Look at a society where public transport use is much much higher: > All major train stations in Japan, and most minor stations, have coin lockers available to use. Coin lockers are a part of daily life in Japan, and they can be found also on bus terminals, shopping centers or department stores, some convenience stores and tourist attractions, and even on city streets. https://japanhorizon.com/train-stations-have-lockers/ https://japanhorizon.com/train-stations-have-lockers/
  - tzs 1y ago
    Note that even in Tokyo, which is often held up as having some of the best public transit in the world, around 30% of households own a car. Around 12% of trips there are taken by private car. That suggests that there are still a significant number of cases that are not covered well by public transit. For example I don't see how lockers solve the issue of multi-store shopping trips that was mentioned in the comment above. The locker would give you some place to accumulate the purchases from each store, but unless you could carry them all simultaneously you'd still need to make multiple trips between the locker and home to get everything home. I suppose you could use public transit when going store to store accumulating things in the locker, then use your car to move everything from the locker to home in one trip. That's probably optimal. While going store to store you don't have to deal with finding parking at each store because you are taking public transit so might save time and money there, and you save time and money by getting your stuff home in one car trip instead of multiple transit trips.
ghc 1y ago
Don't conflate "taxi" as a mode of transit with "taxi" (aka hackney carriage) as a particular industry. The name is meant to tell consumers what to expect, not investors. Combined with "robo", I know exactly what to expect: a licensed driverless car that attempts to charge you more by using circuitous routes, is poorly maintained, doesn't listen to directions, and drives somewhat dangerously.

mindslight 1y ago

The thing about bullshit artists is they can always generate more bullshit. Tesla stock marketing hype is not some fixed quantity that needs to be conserved. Rather, creating more is squarely in Muskov's wheelhouse.

dhosek 1y ago

Yeah, one of the problems with eliminating individual car ownership (which I think is a good idea) is the fact that cars are more than point A to point B transportation options. They also serve as temporary storage units (the case that springs to mind is keeping my guitar and amp in the trunk of my car while I’m at work to get to an afterwork rehearsal, but a less niche case is a shopping trip to multiple stores where the goods purchased along the way are kept in the car at each subsequent stop). And then there’s the case of special configurations, e.g., car seats for those with young children, wheelchair access, etc. Even once FSD gets solved (if it ever does), these use cases also need to be accounted for as well.

netsharc 1y ago
> Even once FSD gets solved (if it ever does), these use cases also need to be accounted for as well. But these are such easy issues to solve. Look at a society where public transport use is much much higher: > All major train stations in Japan, and most minor stations, have coin lockers available to use. Coin lockers are a part of daily life in Japan, and they can be found also on bus terminals, shopping centers or department stores, some convenience stores and tourist attractions, and even on city streets. https://japanhorizon.com/train-stations-have-lockers/ https://japanhorizon.com/train-stations-have-lockers/
- tzs 1y ago
  Note that even in Tokyo, which is often held up as having some of the best public transit in the world, around 30% of households own a car. Around 12% of trips there are taken by private car. That suggests that there are still a significant number of cases that are not covered well by public transit. For example I don't see how lockers solve the issue of multi-store shopping trips that was mentioned in the comment above. The locker would give you some place to accumulate the purchases from each store, but unless you could carry them all simultaneously you'd still need to make multiple trips between the locker and home to get everything home. I suppose you could use public transit when going store to store accumulating things in the locker, then use your car to move everything from the locker to home in one trip. That's probably optimal. While going store to store you don't have to deal with finding parking at each store because you are taking public transit so might save time and money there, and you save time and money by getting your stuff home in one car trip instead of multiple transit trips.

ghc 1y ago

Don't conflate "taxi" as a mode of transit with "taxi" (aka hackney carriage) as a particular industry. The name is meant to tell consumers what to expect, not investors. Combined with "robo", I know exactly what to expect: a licensed driverless car that attempts to charge you more by using circuitous routes, is poorly maintained, doesn't listen to directions, and drives somewhat dangerously.