By Aditya Soni (Reuters) -Tesla shares jumped 10% on Monday, lifted by the long-awaited launch of the company's robotaxi service that CEO Elon Musk has for years championed as a key driver of the electric vehicle maker's lofty valuation.

While no one was in the driver's seat of the Tesla robotaxis, a front-seat rider acted as a "safety monitor" during the trial.

The company debuted its autonomous ride-hailing service Sunday. The limited program is invite-only and uses around 20 cars—signs that Tesla has a long way to go to catch up to its robotaxi rivals.