# Waymo Races Ahead, How Much Longer Will Tesla's Self-Driving Dream Have to Wait?

Latest developments: Waymo announced this week the launch of autonomous driving in five cities: Miami, Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, and Orlando, with a total of over 10 million driverless rides. Meanwhile, Tesla is still testing in Austin, Texas, with only 30 Robotaxis on the road, planning to expand to 500 by the end of the year.

In simple terms, Waymo is already in the lead. It operates in 10 cities, with over 400 autonomous vehicles deployed in Phoenix alone. Tesla only entered the scene after obtaining a license in Arizona at the beginning of the year, making it a "latecomer".

But don't be too pessimistic. Tesla has two potential advantages:

1. **Capacity Monster**: Millions of Teslas on the road, data accumulation can crush competitors.
2. **Lower Cost**: Pure camera solution vs competitors' LiDAR + Radar, significant cost difference in scale.

What about the risks? Tesla's valuation P/E is close to 300 times, which is 10 times the total market value of Ford and General Motors. Regulatory issues, lawsuits, and safety hazards are still looming. Musk's new compensation package promises 1 million Robotaxis + 1 million Optimus robots + 10 million FSD subscription users, which is quite an ambitious target.

Investors need to think clearly: are you buying a car company or a technology company?