Key Takeaways
- A report on Monday revealed that Trump and his transition team might be considering creating a federal-level framework to govern self-driving vehicles.
- Right now, autonomous car makers have to get state-by-state approval, making the process more complicated.
- Soon after the report was released, Tesla’s stocks jumped up by 5%.
On Monday this week, Tesla’s stocks jumped by almost 5% after a report surfaced stating that newly elected US president Donald Trump and his transition team are planning to create a federal framework for self-driving vehicles.
This is huge for Tesla (and other similar car makers) who are currently struggling with the complex legal framework. At the time of writing, autonomous car companies need to get state-by-state approval for all their models (some states like Texas and Florida have no such restriction).
Therefore, introducing a simpler approval framework will help with faster and smoother adoption of self-driving technology.
As per reports, Trump’s transition team is already in talks with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to get started on the task.
It’s worth noting, however, that the aforementioned report hasn’t yet been independently verified, seeing as both the transition team and the NHTSA haven’t responded to any requests for a comment.
Musk Continues to Benefit from Trump’s Victory
If this framework is actually applied, no one will benefit more than Elon Musk. He has been promising fully autonomous self-driving cars for years now but has yet to achieve this goal.
Although there were many technical barriers in the way, legal hurdles and regulatory frameworks were also slowing him down. However, all of this is set to change.
There’s no second-guessing that the victory of Trump was also a victory for Musk, who played a pivotal role in this year’s election.
With millions of dollars in campaign funding, holding rallies for the presidential candidate, and openly endorsing him on social media, Musk has done a lot to get Trump back in the White House. And it looks like the President is now returning the favor to his most loyal supporter.
In fact, just a few days ago, Trump also announced that Musk will be co-leading the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency along with Vivek Ramaswamy.
This department will be responsible for suggesting budgetary cuts and fund reallocation to the government. Many have spoken against this decision, citing Musk’s lack of administrative experience as one of the biggest reasons. However, Trump has dismissed these concerns by reiterating that Musk’s role is purely advisory.
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Krishi is an eager Tech Journalist and content writer for both B2B and B2C, with a focus on making the process of purchasing software easier for businesses and enhancing their online presence and SEO.
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