Photo: @WholeMarsBlog via X
The latest Tesla FSD Beta iteration has become so good that Elon Musk thinks it should be installed on all Tesla vehicles. Tesla's CEO ordered its employees to install and activate the FSD Beta V12.3.1 on new vehicles before delivery and on cars returned from service. Tesla also announced a one-month free trial of FSD on compatible models.
Tesla is facing a breakthrough moment in the Full Self-Driving development, as the end-to-end AI software has become more competent. People who used the latest iteration of the software (V12.3.1) testified that it performs impeccably most of the time, with no or very few disengagements during hours or even days of driving. This made Elon Musk confident that the FSD Beta should be promoted more aggressively from now on.
The first thing people noticed on Monday was that Tesla is now offering a one-month free trial of FSD Beta for all new vehicles that are FSD-capable. These include the Model Y, Model S, and Model X for now, as the refreshed Model 3 and the Cybertruck cannot yet run the FSD Beta software. The one-month free trial extends to existing owners who haven't yet activated FSD Beta on their vehicles.
However, Elon Musk went much further than that. In an email sent at 2:00 AM to Tesla employees, he ordered that FSD V12.3.1 be installed and activated on all new vehicles delivered in North America. Also, the customers should be taken on a "short test ride" before handing over the car. Musk acknowledges that this could slow down the delivery process but emphasized that this is "a hard requirement." At 2:14 AM, Musk sends another email, extending the duty to install and test FSD on cars returning from service.
The first consequence of Musk's emails is that deliveries and service will take much longer. This, however, can be great for Tesla, as more people will get familiar with the FSD's current capabilities. On the other hand, a few obstacles could make Musk's order impossible to enforce, at least for a while. One of them is that Tesla vehicles ship with so-called factory software, which prevents installing new updates for weeks after delivery. This enables Tesla to collect additional telemetry and ensures a smooth delivery experience.
All current factory builds include FSD Beta V11.4.9, and this cannot change unless Tesla includes FSD V12.3.1 or newer in its factory software builds. Also, FSD V12.3.1 is currently based on a 2023 software build and cannot be installed on new vehicles, which ship with 2024 builds. Finally, a new Tesla vehicle must drive for 50-100 miles before Autopilot or FSD Beta becomes available. This is necessary for camera calibration, so Tesla must find a way around it to make FSD available before delivery.
There are ways to facilitate FSD V12.3.1 installation and testing on new customer vehicles, but they are not as immediate as Musk wants. Tesla software tracker Teslascope confirms that Tesla has rebased the FSD Beta V12.3.2 on the 2024.2 software branch, but it won't be available for wide release until next month. Besides that, Tesla is reportedly preparing FSD Beta V12 for factory builds of the Model S, X, and Y.
The refreshed Model 3 will also benefit, as it will be its first-ever FSD build. According to Teslascope, this should happen as soon as next week. However, there is still no word about the Cybertruck, which cannot run FSD or even basic Autopilot.
Even if all these obstacles are removed, there are still many questions that remain unanswered. Some people want to know what happens if FSD screws things up during the test ride and the car is involved in an accident. Would the customers have a say in doing these test rides, or are they mandatory for every delivery?
The first thing people noticed on Monday was that Tesla is now offering a one-month free trial of FSD Beta for all new vehicles that are FSD-capable. These include the Model Y, Model S, and Model X for now, as the refreshed Model 3 and the Cybertruck cannot yet run the FSD Beta software. The one-month free trial extends to existing owners who haven't yet activated FSD Beta on their vehicles.
However, Elon Musk went much further than that. In an email sent at 2:00 AM to Tesla employees, he ordered that FSD V12.3.1 be installed and activated on all new vehicles delivered in North America. Also, the customers should be taken on a "short test ride" before handing over the car. Musk acknowledges that this could slow down the delivery process but emphasized that this is "a hard requirement." At 2:14 AM, Musk sends another email, extending the duty to install and test FSD on cars returning from service.
The first consequence of Musk's emails is that deliveries and service will take much longer. This, however, can be great for Tesla, as more people will get familiar with the FSD's current capabilities. On the other hand, a few obstacles could make Musk's order impossible to enforce, at least for a while. One of them is that Tesla vehicles ship with so-called factory software, which prevents installing new updates for weeks after delivery. This enables Tesla to collect additional telemetry and ensures a smooth delivery experience.
All current factory builds include FSD Beta V11.4.9, and this cannot change unless Tesla includes FSD V12.3.1 or newer in its factory software builds. Also, FSD V12.3.1 is currently based on a 2023 software build and cannot be installed on new vehicles, which ship with 2024 builds. Finally, a new Tesla vehicle must drive for 50-100 miles before Autopilot or FSD Beta becomes available. This is necessary for camera calibration, so Tesla must find a way around it to make FSD available before delivery.
There are ways to facilitate FSD V12.3.1 installation and testing on new customer vehicles, but they are not as immediate as Musk wants. Tesla software tracker Teslascope confirms that Tesla has rebased the FSD Beta V12.3.2 on the 2024.2 software branch, but it won't be available for wide release until next month. Besides that, Tesla is reportedly preparing FSD Beta V12 for factory builds of the Model S, X, and Y.
The refreshed Model 3 will also benefit, as it will be its first-ever FSD build. According to Teslascope, this should happen as soon as next week. However, there is still no word about the Cybertruck, which cannot run FSD or even basic Autopilot.
Even if all these obstacles are removed, there are still many questions that remain unanswered. Some people want to know what happens if FSD screws things up during the test ride and the car is involved in an accident. Would the customers have a say in doing these test rides, or are they mandatory for every delivery?
First, let's talk about Full Self-Driving!
— Teslascope (@teslascope) March 26, 2024
This morning, Elon communicated his interest in making Full Self-Driving V12.3.1 immediately available to customers, even offering a short test ride before delivery.
There are a couple of temporary roadblocks to this, which you'll be… pic.twitter.com/MKDnRFVJQL
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