Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) shares rose 2.6% on Friday, reaching the session’s high, following news that the U.S. government is taking steps to relax regulations that have hindered the rollout of fully autonomous vehicles without manual driving controls.
According to a Bloomberg report, the Trump administration is working to streamline the exemption process for carmakers seeking to launch self-driving vehicles that lack traditional features like steering wheels and brake pedals. The move could provide a significant boost to Tesla’s plans to introduce a robotaxi network.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced that it would simplify this exemption procedure, which has historically taken years. In a letter published on its website Friday, NHTSA Chief Counsel Peter Simshauser said the agency now “anticipates reaching decisions on most exemption requests within months rather than years.”
Currently, federal vehicle safety standards require that new cars be equipped with conventional human-operated controls. This means companies developing fully autonomous vehicles must apply for exemptions, leading to extended delays.
While Tesla stock jumped on the update, shares of ride-hailing firms Uber (NYSE: UBER) and Lyft (NASDAQ: LYFT) dipped slightly, possibly signaling investor concern about rising competition from autonomous taxi services.
The regulatory developments support Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s vision of deploying a fleet of self-driving “Cybercabs,” which could pose a challenge to existing ride-sharing platforms.
