Tesla has made a big point of designing the Cybercab without a steering wheel, accelerator pedal, or brake pedal, but it turns out the purpose-built robotaxi may still have a way to be driven manually. A passenger riding in one of the newly deployed Cybercabs in Austin, Texas, discovered what appears to be an internal virtual joystick interface hidden within the vehicle’s center touchscreen. The discovery adds an interesting wrinkle to Tesla’s vision of a vehicle designed from the outset to operate without conventional driver controls.
The unusual interface was spotted by passenger Matthew Skrzypczack, who shared video of the Cybercab screen showing a joystick-style control along with instructions to press and hold it. The display also prompted the user to swipe up or down to select a gear. Skrzypczack attempted to operate the controls but was unable to get the vehicle moving and eventually contacted Tesla support. Other recent coverage has shown similar controls with functions for steering, acceleration, braking, stopping, and sounding the horn.
