Tesla stock is down around 1% on Thursday: what's hurting the EV stock? Tesla (TSLA) shares edged lower on Thursday as investors weighed incremental progress in the company's autonomous driving efforts against broader weakness across technology stocks. Shares of the electric vehicle maker fell 1.04% in early trading, underperforming a broader market decline that saw the S&P 500 slip 0.2%. The weakness came amid a difficult session for technology stocks. Nvidia fell 0.5%, while Intel dropped 3.1%. Sentiment across the semiconductor sector was pressured after Broadcom's fiscal second-quarter results disappointed investors, sending its shares down 15.5%. Robotaxi expansion draws attention Investor focus remained centered on Tesla's autonomous driving ambitions, particularly developments surrounding its robotaxi operations in Austin, Texas. Barclays analyst Dan Levy wrote in a research note this week that Tesla had removed safety monitors from robotaxis operating within its Austin geofence. The development coincided with an expansion of the operating area, which more than doubled in size on Wednesday. The expanded zone now includes highway driving along Interstate 35 as well as suburban areas, including Pflugerville and Manor. According to Levy, the unsupervised fleet peaked at roughly 25 vehicles in late April based on independent tracking data. The move represents another step in Tesla's efforts to scale autonomous ride-hailing services, which have become a central pillar of the company's long-term growth narrative. Tesla trails Waymo in fleet size Despite the broader operating area, Tesla remains significantly smaller than Alphabet-owned Waymo in terms of active robotaxi deployments. Recent filings show Waymo has 577 robotaxis registered in Texas, approximately 13 times Tesla's statewide total of 42 vehicles. The company has previously said about 300 of those vehicles operate in Austin. As a result, Tesla's active fleet remains only a fraction of Waymo's presence in the city. However, the two companies rely