Tesla has quietly started testing its self-driving software inside the Boring Company’s single-lane tunnels beneath Las Vegas, though officials overseeing the system say a fully autonomous service is still some distance away.
The tunnels, known as the Vegas Loop, are operated by Elon Musk’s Boring Company and were first opened in 2021 under the Las Vegas Convention Center (LVCC). The network—about 1.7 miles of underground passageways was pitched as a futuristic alternative to gridlock, with Tesla vehicles whisking passengers between stations at high speed. For now, however, the cars remain staffed by human drivers.
According to Steve Hill, CEO of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) software is currently being tested inside the tunnels. The program mirrors the consumer-facing version available to Tesla owners and runs with a Boring Company safety operator behind the wheel. Hill said that while the vehicles have avoided accidents, there have been moments when safety drivers needed to intervene.
“There have been no scrapes or accidents thus far, though drivers have periodically had to take control,” Hill told Fortune. He added that although he expects the system will eventually run autonomously, the timeline for achieving that goal remains unclear.
The LVCC was the first venue to adopt Musk’s Loop concept, but the project has struggled to meet its early promise. Expansion has been gradual, with a few additional tunnels connecting hotels to the convention center, and passenger service still dependent on chauffeured Teslas. Critics have pointed out that the tunnels’ controlled, one-lane environment should make them one of the easiest places to achieve true self-driving, yet four years on, autonomy has not materialized.
Elon Musk has repeatedly emphasized that autonomy is coming sooner rather than later. Even as his tunneling venture works through its challenges, he claimed this month that Tesla’s upcoming robotaxi service will be able to serve half of the U.S. population by the end of the year.
