Las Vegas is becoming a major proving ground for driverless taxis: Nevada’s transportation regulator has cleared Tesla, Waymo and Uber to operate up to 8,000 robotaxis around Las Vegas. Until now, Tesla’s limit had been just ten vehicles.
Green light for three providers
On 20 August 2026, the regulator unanimously approved three applications for paid robotaxi operations in Clark County, the county around Las Vegas. Over the next twelve months, the companies may together put up to 8,000 autonomous vehicles on the road.
The breakdown
- Tesla gets the largest allocation, with up to 5,000 vehicles.
- Waymo may operate up to 1,000 driverless cars.
- Uber gets another 1,000 – through partnerships with Motional (Hyundai) and Zoox.
A huge leap
For a city that spent years testing autonomous driving in small numbers, this is a massive jump – Tesla’s previous limit was ten vehicles. Las Vegas could become one of the largest robotaxi markets in the US.
Sources: TechCrunch, Engadget.
