Tesla Full Self-Driving Mode: Autopilot or Not?

The quest to create a car that drives itself safely and efficiently has captured the human imagination for decades. The Tesla Full Self-Driving (FSD) system goes far in this direction. This Tesla autopilot is intended to provide a seamless autonomous driving experience by making it safer, more efficient, and more accessible to everyone.

How to get FSD on your Tesla

The primary goal of FSD is to improve vehicle safety by introducing advanced technology to reduce the risks associated with human error, such as distraction, fatigue, and dangerous driving. We'll explore the history of Tesla Autopilot and its current accomplishments.

Origins of Tesla Full-Driving

Tesla’s journey to autonomous driving began long before the term “Full Self-Driving” appeared.

In 2014, Tesla introduced its first driver-assistance features, including adaptive cruise control and lane-keeping assist, as part of its Autopilot system. These early steps laid a foundation for modern technology.
The real turning point came in October 2016, when Tesla announced that all new cars would receive the hardware needed for fully autonomous driving. This bold move signaled Tesla’s commitment to achieving true autonomy, even if the software to fully utilize that hardware was still in progress.
Throughout 2017 and 2018, Tesla continued to refine its Autopilot system, introducing features like automatic lane changes and self-driving navigation. Each small improvement paved the way toward the company's goal of fully autonomous driving.

Pushing the limits of autopilot in cars: are any Teslas fully self-driving?

As of July 2024, the Tesla Full Self-Driving has made significant advances, with the release of the 12.5 version marking a major leap forward in capabilities. This FSD is part of the recently released firmware, highlighting Tesla’s ongoing commitment to integrating the latest advances in autonomous driving into its regular software updates.

While active driver control is still required, this latest version introduces several revolutionary features:

Single end-to-end neural network: FSD 12.5 upgrades the city street driving stack to a single end-to-end neural network trained on millions of video clips, replacing over 300,000 lines of explicit C++ code. This results in a smoother, more natural driving experience.
Vision-based attention monitoring: The system uses the in-car camera to monitor driver alertness, focusing on the driver’s eyes, hands, and overall engagement with the road.
Vehicle-to-fleet communication: FSD 12.5 enables cars to communicate road closures or other obstacles back to the fleet in real time, improving overall safety and efficiency.
Reverse control: The system can move the vehicle in reverse, a critical feature for comprehensive autonomous operation.
Improved unprotected left turns: FSD 12.5 demonstrates significantly ameliorated control of unprotected left turns, a historically challenging maneuver for autonomous systems.
Weather and air quality information: The update includes weather forecasting and an Air Quality Index (AQI) display, giving drivers greater awareness of their surroundings.
Improved performance on Model Y with HW4: The initial release focuses on Model Y vehicles equipped with Hardware 4.0, showcasing Tesla’s latest hardware capabilities.

These advancements are built on previous features, including:

City street navigation;
Enhanced decision-making in complex driving situations;
High-quality visualization of the vehicle's surroundings;
Smart Summon for low-speed environments;
Advanced highway driving features.

Is Tesla FSD level 2 or 3?

Despite these impressive advancements, Tesla still classifies its FSD system as a Level 2 autonomy system, requiring the driver to remain attentive and ready to take control.

Check out our other articles:

Beyond full autonomy

Looking ahead, Tesla’s ambitions for full self-driving remain high. The company continues to work toward Level 5 autonomy, a system capable of driving the car in any weather condition without human intervention. Some key areas for future development include:

Further improvements to integrated AI system: Building on the success of the end-to-end neural network, Tesla aims to refine its AI capabilities to handle increasingly complex scenarios.
Expanded hardware compatibility: Future updates are expected to bring FSD 12.5’s advanced features to a wider range of Tesla models and hardware versions.
Enhanced driver monitoring: Updates may include support for drivers wearing sunglasses and improve the system’s ability to monitor driver attention in various conditions.
Regulatory approval: As the technology evolves, Tesla will work closely with regulators to gain approval for higher levels of autonomy.
Handling edge cases: Addressing rare and unexpected driving situations remains a significant challenge that Tesla is actively working on.
Ethical considerations: As AI takes a more active role in driving decisions, addressing the ethical implications of those choices will become increasingly important.
Infrastructure Integration: Future versions of FSD may integrate more closely with smart city infrastructure, improving driving safety and efficiency.

The road to full autonomy is long and complex, but Tesla’s progress with FSD is remarkable. The company’s iterative approach, continually rolling out updates and improvements, has allowed it to make rapid strides in a field many thought would take decades to mature. The Tesla Full Self-Driving system will continue to evolve, pushing the boundaries of autonomous driving.

While challenges remain, the promise of safer roads, increased mobility, and a fundamental change in the way people think about transportation has Tesla and its customers excited about the future. As we continue down this path, one thing is for sure: you can buy a Tesla already today and become a part of the high-tech driving community.