Tesla Full Self Driving [FSD] Beta takes its first steps outside of North America [Australia, Germany, and Belgium]

[Hamartia Antidote]

Tesla FSD Beta takes its first steps outside of North America

Tesla FSD Beta has officially taken its first steps outside of North America, with the software making its way to...

electrek.co

Tesla FSD Beta has officially taken its first steps outside of North America, with the software making its way to cars in Australia, Germany, and Belgium.


Tesla owners are still waiting for the long-promised full self-driving capability, but in some markets, like in Europe, the Pacific, and Asia, owners don’t even have access to FSD Beta.

FSD Beta enables Tesla vehicles to drive autonomously through most driving scenarios – including traffic lights – but under heavy supervision from the driver at all times. It requires frequent driver interventions on top of supervision and, therefore, it is still considered a level 2 driver-assist system.

Tesla launched FSD Beta to some US owners in late 2020, and it has been expanding it to owners across North America over the last three years.

It is now available to any Tesla owner in North America with a vehicle equipped with the FSD computer who either paid for the up to $15,000 FSD package or a $200/month subscription.

CEO Elon Musk has talked about bringing FSD Beta to Europe and Asia soon, and it now looks like it is starting to happen.

Teslascope, which tracks Tesla software updates, detected FSD Beta updates going to cars in Australia, Germany, and Belgium:

https://twitter.com/x/status/1661531796419514369

This is likely an early release for internal testing ahead of regulatory approval for FSD Beta to come to Tesla customers in those markets.

Unlike competitors who use mapping and geo-fenced approach to self-driving, Tesla is taking a more generalized approach based on AI and vision, but it still needs to adapt its self-driving system to requirements in different markets, like driving rules and different signage.

The automaker also has to have the software approved by regulators in those markets, which has been a problem for some Autopilot features in the past in Europe and China.

Many industry watchers believe that Tesla might be facing an uphill battle to release FSD Beta in those markets, but the few cars getting this update are an encouraging sign.

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More countries added

2023.12.10 Official Tesla Software Update | Teslascope

Release notes and statistics for 2023.12.10 with Full Self-Driving (Beta) v11.3.6 and more.

teslascope.com

 

[Hamartia Antidote]

FSD Beta should be available in Europe for Left Hand Drive this summer, Right Hand Drive a few months later. These dates depend on regulatory approval.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1508890304287592450

 

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Elon Musk is in China, sparking rumors of Tesla FSD Beta and new Model 3

Elon Musk is in China meeting with government officials, and Tesla CEO’s visit is sparking rumors of a FSD Beta...

electrek.co

Elon Musk is in China meeting with government officials, and Tesla CEO’s visit is sparking rumors of a FSD Beta release in China and of the new Model 3.


Musk’s private jet landed in Beijing this morning for a meeting with Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang.

uh-oh possible bad news...not looking happy.

 

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Tesla FSD on its way to Europe as Test Operators hiring spree begins

Tesla has started hiring test operators for "Autopilot" testing in Europe suggesting full-self driving heading to owners outside of the US.

thedriven.io

Tesla FSD on its way to Europe as Test Operators hiring spree begins​

Tesla has begun hiring what it calls “ADAS Test Operators” outside of North America for what is believed to be the expansion of the Full Self Driving (FSD) Autopilot suite.

This time, according to Tesla’s Europe careers page, it spans across many parts of Europe including Finland, Switzerland, Spain, Norway, Italy, Turkiye, Austria, The Netherlands, Sweden and the UK.

Most importantly for the Australian context, another right-hand-drive market is the UK. A role is being advertised in West Drayton, which is located 26 km west of London.

IMAGE: TESLA EUROPE

According to the job description, the ADAS operator will identify improvements and regressions across software iterations. This role could require the flexibility of travelling to domestic and international destinations as necessary, to test vehicles on public roads, test tracks and proving grounds.”

For Autopilot testing the role specifically states that the ADAS operator will survey the local region and design routes with perspective scenarios for Autopilot testing. They will also study and familiarise with the latest Autopilot version and other relevant vehicle features.

This is a big step for Tesla as it expands the testing and a potential release of its FSD software outside of North America.

Recently, Tesla also started producing Model Y vehicles from the US with what it calls Hardware 4 (HW4) which has higher-resolution cameras and a new FSD computer that will further improve what the car sees for FSD on the roads.

It’s unclear if the Model 3 and Model Y vehicles being produced in Shanghai for markets like Australia are seeing the same hardware being fitted in them just yet.

The new hardware is part of Tesla’s constant improvement to its vehicles but at the same time future-proof’s self-driving capabilities.
Cars with the current generation of hardware on the road will also be capable of FSD driving as it’s seen by thousands of FSD users in the US.

It still has a way to go with approvals from authorities in Europe but with the improvements being noticed by drivers on each software version released in the US and new hires in Europe, it’s getting closer to fulfilling Tesla’s autonomous driving vision.

 

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Tesla hiring Australian drivers to 'not' drive its cars

The US car brand looks to be moving forward with the long-awaited 'Full Self Driving' rollout on local roads

www.drive.com.au