Tesla has applied to Arizona’s Department of Transportation for permits that would allow the electric-vehicle maker to test and eventually operate its Robotaxi fleet in the Phoenix metropolitan area, the agency confirmed. The filing, made on 26 June, covers autonomous driving with and without a human safety operator; regulators expect to decide by the end of July. The move marks Tesla’s first formal attempt to take its nascent ride-hailing business beyond Texas, where it began an invitation-only pilot in South Austin on 22 June. That fleet of roughly 10 to 20 Model Y sport-utility vehicles is remotely supervised and carries a safety operator in the front passenger seat. Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk said the company will widen the Austin service area this weekend. Musk added on his social-media platform that Tesla aims to introduce Robotaxis in the San Francisco Bay Area within one to two months, subject to state approvals. California requires separate autonomous-vehicle testing and deployment permits from both the Department of Motor Vehicles and the Public Utilities Commission; Tesla has not yet applied for driverless permissions there. Alphabet-owned Waymo, the market leader in fully driverless services, has operated a Robotaxi network across about 315 square miles of Phoenix since 2020 and holds the necessary Arizona and California permits. News of Tesla’s expansion efforts lifted the company’s shares about 3% on 10 July, outperforming a flat Nasdaq Composite as investors focused on the potential of autonomy to drive future growth.