Tesla's Cybercab Already Under Federal Scrutiny Over Missing Steering Wheel

Tesla’s newly revealed Cybercab is barely out of the gate, and U.S. federal regulators are already looking into how a vehicle without a steering wheel fits into existing safety rules. According to InsideEVs, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has opened questions just hours after the robotaxi’s debut.

The core issue is that current federal motor vehicle safety standards assume a human driver is present, with manual controls like a steering wheel and pedals. A design that removes those elements entirely runs into a regulatory gray zone, and Tesla will need to secure exemptions or push for rule changes before the Cybercab can operate on public roads at scale.

This is not the first time Tesla’s unconventional approach has drawn attention from safety officials, but the Cybercab’s driverless layout makes the stakes higher. The investigation is still in its early stages, so it remains unclear what specific requirements Tesla may have to meet or how long the review could take.