TeslaTesla's Cybercab service in Austin, Texas, has offered locals another way to get around since it launched in September — but if you're hoping for a late-night ride, you're out of luck.While the service's cutoff was recently pushed back by an hour, they still don't operate overnight. Elon Musk recently explained why the cars go offline when they do."Robotaxi operating hours moved from 10pm to 11pm," Musk, 55, wrote on X. "The main thing we're trying to solve is making sure that we don't run over pets when they're hard to see at night. Literally trying to avoid grey kittens on grey tarmac in the dark."Commenters quickly offered ways to extend the service hours while protecting the cats. One suggested thermal night-vision cameras. Musk replied that standard cameras can see well in low light when AI analyzes the incoming photons.TelsaAnother user took a sarcastic jab at Tesla's technology, suggesting the company look into a sensor that uses light to detect and measure distance, a pointed nod to LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging).LiDAR fires laser pulses and times how long they take to bounce off an object and return, which lets a vehicle map its surroundings precisely. Companies like Waymo and Zoox rely on it. Tesla takes a different route, pairing cameras with AI and neural networks.JAVIER ROJAS/PIMusk has never been shy about his feelings on the subject. In fact, he ridiculed the technology at Tesla's first Investor Autonomy Day in 2019."Lidar is a fool's errand," the SpaceX founder said, per TechCrunch. "Anyone relying on lidar is doomed. Doomed! [They are] expensive sensors that are unnecessary. It's like having a whole bunch of expensive appendices. Like, one appendix is bad, well now you have a whole bunch of them, it's ridiculous, you'll see."Read More From First for AutosYouTuber Gets 2 'Completely Dead' $140K Lucid EVs Running Again – But There's a CatchOne Mistake Drivers Make That Could Be Unknowingly Ruining Their Car's IgnitionCorvette Driver Blocks SUV From Entering Traffic, Sparks Viral Debate Over Who Was WrongThis story Elon Musk Reveals the Surprising Reason Tesla's Cybercab Service Shuts Down at Night first appeared on First for Autos. Follow First for Autos on Yahoo so you don't miss what's coming next.