A decompiled build for an upcoming version of Tesla‘s Robotaxi app contains code for a virtual booking queue, lock-screen ride tracking, and high-demand warnings — features designed around a fleet still measured in hundreds of vehicles across seven major metros.
The findings were first spotted by X user ‘Tesla_App_iOS’ in code strings of version 26.6.5 of the Robotaxi app.
Together, the strings describe a shift from the current on-demand hailing model — where riders either get a vehicle or receive an unavailability notice — toward a managed waiting line.
A ride confirmation countdown string indicates riders will need to accept an assigned vehicle within a set window.
Failing to confirm releases the Cybercab to the next person in the queue.
Deeper integration with Apple’s Dynamic Island and iOS Live Activities also surfaced in the decompilation.
According to the code, riders will be able to track their ETA and queue position directly from the lock screen without keeping the app open.
A force-close protection mechanism warns users who kill the app while waiting that doing so may forfeit their spot.
Additional settings nudges prompt riders to enable Live Activities and push notifications ahead of vehicle arrival.
Small Fleet, High Demand
Tesla‘s Robotaxi service currently spans seven US markets: Austin, Dallas, Houston, Miami, Orlando, Tampa, and the San Francisco Bay Area.
Only the Bay Area fleet exceeds 500 vehicles, and rides there still require a human safety driver under California regulations.
Crowdsourced data from Robotaxi Tracker placed the unsupervised fleet at roughly 21 vehicles as of mid-July, spread across Austin, Dallas, Tampa, and Orlando.
Tesla disclosed 380,000 unsupervised miles and nearly 2.5 million total paid miles through the second quarter, with VP of AI Software Ashok Elluswamy saying that unsupervised miles had grown at double-digit weekly rates since early 2026.
Every vehicle in the Robotaxi fleet is a modified Model Y running Tesla‘s FSD software; the Cybercab, a purpose-built two-seat autonomous vehicle with no steering wheel or pedals, has not yet entered commercial service, despite entering production earlier this year.
Musk Defends Pace
CEO Elon Musk addressed investor frustration over fleet size directly on the second-quarter earnings call.
“Our goals are very ambitious for Robotaxi, but we do need to be cautious about causing any accidents or causing any harm to anyone,” he said in his opening remarks.
The Chief Executive pointed to the asymmetric scrutiny autonomous vehicles face relative to human-driven crashes.
“Although there are, I think, 30,000 to 40,000 automotive deaths per year in the US alone, most of those do not generate any press,” he said. “If we injure even one person, it’ll be worldwide headline news, and regulators will immediately clamp down on our activities.”
Therefore, he noted that “we’re going as fast as humanly possible in scaling Robotaxi, but while trying to ensure that we do not harm anyone at all, and ideally do not even run over a pet.”
CFO Vaibhav Taneja said the company wants to “sort these things out in a smaller fleet in a controlled manner” before going “really high in terms of deployment.”
VP of Vehicle Engineering Lars Moravy added that “regulatory situations are different city by city” and that expanding market by market ensures Tesla is “meeting all of those one at a time.”
Musk also acknowledged the Cybercab faces its own scaling bottleneck.
“Unlike, say, Model 3, Model Y, and our other vehicles where we’ve got a lot of vehicles on the road, millions of vehicles on the road, we don’t have that for Cybercab,” he noted.
Tesla needs to “accumulate driving data that is specific to the Cybercab” before deploying the purpose-built two-seater at volume.
The CEO’s caution on pace is not new.
On the Q3 2025 earnings call, he told analysts that the company was “being very cautious about the deployment.”
Virtual queues do not add vehicles to the road, however they convert what is currently a binary experience — ride available or ride unavailable — into a structured wait, retaining riders who would otherwise abandon the booking attempt.
Tesla has not confirmed the feature or disclosed a release timeline.
Elluswamy said on the Q2 call that fleet ramp would “accelerate throughout the year,” alongside expansion into new US markets.
Tesla reported Robotaxi growth of more than 10% week over week in miles driven as of the earnings call.
