CES 2026: I got a first look at Tensor’s Robocar
Tensor Auto is very confident about its Robocar. It's the most succinct way I can describe how I felt after getting a look under the hood at this very luxurious electric vehicle at CES 2026, just a day before the show opened.
Here is Tensor's pitch: a personal, privately owned autonomous vehicle designed from the ground up for Level 4 driving, not retrofitted after the fact (like how Waymo uses Jaguar vehicles). According to Amy Luca, Tensor's chief marketing officer, that distinction matters.
"This wasn't built by taking an existing car and adding autonomy," she told me. "It was designed as an autonomous vehicle first, and then designed to be something you’d actually want to own."
Tensor positions the Robocar as an agentic vehicle that communicates with its owner. In theory, the car can notify you about traffic before you leave, respond to voice commands, and make decisions based on context, not just routes. Luca emphasized that the company’s background in robotaxi development heavily informed the system, but that private ownership was always the end goal.
The Tensor Robocar on display features a sleek, silver sedan-like body with a low, aerodynamic profile and a prominent halo LiDAR unit mounted on the roof. Camera-based side mirrors, flush lighting, and subtle black accents give it a futuristic but restrained look.
Under the hood, and on the roof, that intent is obvious. The Robocar is equipped with numerous sensors, including five LiDAR units, the aforementioned halo-style sensor mounted on top, more than a dozen cameras, radar, and over 100 sensors in total. All of that data is processed onboard using an Nvidia GPU, with Tensor opting for an internal hard drive rather than relying entirely on the cloud — a choice Luca framed as a privacy decision as much as a technical one.
The interior reinforces the car's dual nature. It supports both manual driving and fully autonomous operation, thanks in part to a foldable steering wheel developed in partnership with Autoliv. The company boasts that it has the world's first folding steering wheel. In autonomous mode, the wheel retracts entirely, opening up the front cabin and shifting safety systems accordingly. In manual mode, it functions like a conventional wheel. "People still want the option to drive," Luca said. "We didn't want autonomy to mean giving that up."
The Robocar also leans unapologetically into luxury. The massage seats, Dolby Atmos sound system, large displays, and spacious cabin layout create a lounge-like atmosphere that feels more relaxed than cockpit-focused. Tensor isn't disclosing pricing yet, but Luca acknowledged it will land at the high end of the market, reflecting both the hardware and the long-term autonomy roadmap. Production is expected to ramp up in the second half of 2026.
Walking away, what stood out wasn't any single feature, but how finished the whole thing felt.
Head to the Mashable CES 2026 hub for the latest news and live updates from the biggest show in tech, where Mashable journalists are reporting live.
Chance Townsend is the General Assignments Editor at Mashable, covering tech, video games, dating apps, digital culture, and whatever else comes his way. He has a Master's in Journalism from the University of North Texas and is a proud orange cat father. His writing has also appeared in PC Mag and Mother Jones.
In his free time, he cooks, loves to sleep, and greatly enjoys Detroit sports. If you have any tips or want to talk shop about the Lions, you can reach out to him on Bluesky @offbrandchance.bsky.social or by email at [email protected].
