Elon Musk Responds to The Suggestion Tesla Has Added a Special “Kill Switch” to All Model Y Robotaxis Operating in Public

Controversy continues to surround Tesla’s rollout of the much-awaited Robotaxi service. After the public launch, critics noted that Tesla has assigned employees, called 'Safety Observers,' to sit in the passenger seat during each ride.

These safety observers, although not directly behind the wheel, critics argue, their presence alone prevents Tesla from claiming the Robotaxi service as a true Level 4 autonomous driving system.

These concerns intensified when Robotaxi users noticed the safety observers continuously hovering their hands over a button on the door, which in regular/non-Robotaxi Model Ys is used to electronically open the passenger-side door.

Many believe Tesla has repurposed this button as a sort of ‘kill switch’ or emergency brake, implying that although Tesla removed the driver from the driver’s seat, the EV maker simply moved the controls to the passenger side closer to the safety observer.

BREAKING: I’m hearing reports Waymo is shook by Tesla’s Robotaxi launch.

The company is panicking about the level of innovation and currently looking to copy Tesla by designing a kill switch in the passenger door button and adding Waymo supervisors in their rides. pic.twitter.com/2PDnPtdBV6

Advertising

— Fred Lambert (@FredericLambert) June 23, 2025

Tesla critics have used the “special button” to undermine the Robotaxi program.

However, Elon Musk downplayed the controversy, turning the whole issue surrounding the “button” into a joke.

Musk made his comment in response to a video shared by a Tesla supporter who goes by the username “Bearded Tesla” on X.

Bearded Tesla shared a video sarcastically titled “Tesla RoboTaxi Deception?!?! How Tesla Is Cheating With "Safety Observers"

In the video, Bearded Tesla approaches a refreshed Tesla Model Y in his driveway, which is similar to the Robotaxis giving rides in the wild.

He then opens the passenger-side door, sits in the seat, and hovers his fingers over a button on the door, similar to the safety observer.

Bearded Tesla continues to say in his video…

“Yesterday, somebody discovered that in the Robotaxi, the safety observer in the front has a cheat button, and I think I might have the same button.”

[Going inside the passenger seat of his Model Y] They were riding up here; they were sitting here; and this button we’re about to find out what it does, cause they were apparently doing this to be able to do something special, so let's find out what it does.”

In his video, Bearded Tesla presses the button, and he immediately cuts to another video of a large explosion going off.

😂

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 23, 2025

By juxtaposing him pressing the button and then cutting to a large explosion, Bearded Tesla is trying to poke fun at people who are making a big deal out of the “special button.”

Musk saw this and responded not once, but twice, to Bearded Tesla’s video; both times with a laughing emoji, suggesting that the “kill switch” button controversy is a non-issue.

Musk, regretably, did not specify why the safety observers kept their hands near the button on the door throughout the Robotaxi's drive.

This emboldened some Tesla fans to suggest the safety observers were simply placing their hands over the door handle, and there is nothing more to see.

However, some Tesla owners running Tesla’s latest full self-driving software have put these claims to the test.

The Tesla owners have shown that during FSD drive, pressing the “special button,” which in regular use is the electronic door open button, does absolutely nothing.

When in FSD, if the driver presses this button, the system does nothing and continues to drive.

However, in the Robotaxi, it appears that Tesla has repurposed this previously unused button as a sort of emergency brake, allowing safety observers to deploy it in the event the vehicle does something that puts the occupants in harm's way.

Overall, Tesla critics argue that a “driver” with their fingers on a special button, ready to take control at any moment, precludes the Robotaxi from being considered a truly autonomous vehicle.

Conversely, Tesla supporters believe that having a Tesla employee with their fingers close to the button is not a significant issue.

However, please let me know what you think in the comments. Share your ideas by clicking the RED “Add new comment” button below. Also, be sure to visit our site, torquenews.com/Tesla, regularly for the latest updates.

Image: Screenshot from Sawyer Merritt’s video on X

For more information, check out: A Tesla Cybertruck Owner Says He Doesn’t Drive His Truck If It’s Raining – Adds “My Wife Has to Go to The Doctor’s & I Don’t Know How to Tell Her She Shouldn’t Take The Cybertruck Because It’s Raining”

Tinsae Aregay has been following Tesla and the evolution of the EV space daily for several years. He covers everything about Tesla, from the cars to Elon Musk, the energy business, and autonomy. Follow Tinsae on Twitter at @TinsaeAregay for daily Tesla news.