A mannequin simulating a child crossing the street to board a school bus was crushed over and over again by a Tesla equipped with a self-driving feature on Thursday—safety advocates' latest warning of weaknesses in the automaker's tech as it prepares to launch robotaxis on Austin roads.

However, the company has also been fighting tooth and nail to keep those plans under wraps, according to a new report. Tesla has teased its robotaxi program since CEO Elon Musk fi

With hundreds of nonfatal incidents and 51 reported fatalities connected to Tesla's robotaxis, Texans are questioning their safety ahead of Austin's June debut.

Musk has staked Tesla’s future on self-driving vehicles he has promised for a decade but hasn’t delivered, making Austin's robotaxi launch closely watched as a potential milestone.