Tesla Needs The Bitcoin Lightning Network For Its Autonomous “Robotaxi“ Fleet

Tesla Needs The Bitcoin Lightning Network For Its Autonomous “Robotaxi“ Fleet

Illustration of generating artificial lightning in Nikola Tesla's laboratory. Tesla, the technology ... [+] company, should implement the Bitcoin Lightning Network as the primary payment rail for its Robotaxi autonomous fleet.



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Ever since Tesla

TSLA

announced its plan for an autonomous "Robotaxi“ ride-sharing network in April 2019, the company propelled itself beyond just being a car manufacturer. With the announcement, Tesla indicated its willingness to be a pioneer creating new markets and business models enabled by mind-bending futuristic technology only conceived of in science fiction. For the autonomous fleet to operate as designed, it should implement Bitcoin's Lightning Network as its primary payment rail coordinating all activity for the fleet.



The ride-sharing network will work similar to Uber

UBER

and Lyft

LYFT

. However, instead of having a network of independent drivers picking up passengers, with the press of a button on the Tesla app, Tesla car owners will lend out their cars to autonomously drive passengers and earn extra cash. During the unveiling, Tesla CEO Elon Musk said Tesla owners could earn an extra $30,000 per year by participating.









Unveiled in April 2019,