Public safety advocates and political activists in the United States are pushing back, as Elon Musk eyes June 22 for the pilot launch of Tesla’s robotaxi service in Austin, Texas.

 Demonstrators gathered downtown Texas on Thursday, citing concerns over Tesla’s self-driving technology and Musk’s ties to the Trump administration.

Groups like the Dawn Project, Tesla Takedown, and Resist Austin argue that the company’s autonomous systems remain unsafe for public deployment.

Tesla vehicles in the U.S. come equipped with either a standard Autopilot package or a premium Full Self-Driving option—also called FSD Supervised.

These systems offer features such as automatic lane keeping, steering, and parking.

However, according to data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Tesla vehicles using these systems have been involved in hundreds of crashes, including dozens that resulted in fatalities.

Musk recently shared a video on X revealing Tesla’s robotaxi prototypes—upgraded versions of the Model Y outfitted with an unreleased version of the company’s Full Self-Driving software.

This upcoming “unsupervised” FSD system is designed to enable fully autonomous driving without human input.

Ahead of Tesla’s planned robotaxi launch, tech safety group The Dawn Project held a public demonstration in Austin to showcase potential dangers of the company’s Full Self-Driving system.

Using a Model Y running FSD version 13.2.9, the group showed the vehicle ignoring a school bus with an extended stop sign and striking a child-sized mannequin placed in its path.

The group says the test underscores serious safety flaws in Tesla’s autonomous technology.

The CEO of The Dawn Project and head of Green Hills Software,

Dan O’Dowd—which supplies technology to Tesla rivals like Ford and Toyota—led the Austin demonstration targeting Tesla’s Full Self-Driving system.

Among those in attendance was Stephanie Gomez, who voiced frustration over Elon Musk’s growing influence in government affairs.

She also criticized Tesla’s lack of transparency around its robotaxi technology and said she had no confidence in the company’s safety practices.

While several protesters expressed frustration over Elon Musk’s political involvement, many emphasized safety as their top concern.

Silvia Revelis, one of the demonstrators, said that although she opposes Musk’s political activity, her main worry is the safety risks posed by Tesla’s autonomous technology.

“Citizens have not been able to get safety testing results,” she said. “Musk believes he’s above the law.”