(Reuters) – Tesla (NASDAQ:) is preparing to register its ‘Full Self-Driving’ software with authorities in China ahead of the planned rollout of the technologically advanced feature this year, three people with knowledge of the matter said the case.
The U.S. electric vehicle maker is also considering selling the software as a monthly subscription to users of its cars in China, its second-largest market, they said.
A successful software registration with the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology will pave the way for Tesla to internally test Full Self-Driving (FSD) by allowing its employees to drive on Chinese public roads before upgrading to its Chinese users is provided. months, two people said. The company currently offers two, less advanced versions of its Autopilot driver assistance system in China.
Tesla currently offers owners of its vehicles access to FSD for a one-time fee of 64,000 yuan ($8,828.32). It may also offer the service in the future for a monthly fee of about $98, they said.
Reuters has previously reported that Tesla is also considering granting FSD licenses to other automakers in China.
Selling FSD in China would open a new source of revenue for the EV manufacturer, which has seen its sales volumes there fall by 7.6% in the first four months of the year, due to increasing discounts and competition from Chinese EV manufacturers.
Tesla’s attempt to roll out FSD in China would also “put pressure on other EV startups to accelerate their research and development,” said Yale Zhang, managing director of Shanghai-based consultancy Automotive Foresight.
Tesla did not respond to a request for comment. The sources do not want to be named because the plans are private.
The previously unreported rollout schedule comes as Tesla redoubles efforts to boost global development of its self-driving system with data collected and processed in China, part of a strategic shift by CEO Elon Musk.
The automaker is working to bring version 12 of FSD to China, the latest version of the software that Musk said gave him confidence that Tesla had a path to delivering fully autonomous driving systems.
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Tesla would join at least 10 automakers and suppliers, including Huawei and Xpeng (NYSE:), in offering so-called level-two autonomous driving capabilities in China.
And while Tesla charges FSD, Li Auto (NASDAQ:) and
Level two systems like FSD still require an attentive driver with hands on the wheel, but Musk has said more fully autonomous vehicles are close. Tesla has said it will reveal unspecified details about its robotaxi program in August.
Tesla’s AI model for autonomous driving, known as an end-to-end neural network, is a departure from the more rule-based algorithms that have been used to train self-driving systems.
Some see that model as a way to build self-driving cars that learn faster and make more human-like decisions along the way.
Huawei and Xpeng also recently said they have begun end-to-end AI model development for autonomous driving, which would follow Tesla’s lead.
While Tesla’s rivals can develop algorithms needed to compete with FSD’s approach, it will be a challenge for them to convince the US company of its data and computing power needs, said Yin Chengliang, professor at Institute of Intelligent Vehicle of Shanghai Jiao. Tong University.
Tesla uses a supercomputer it calls Dojo to train the FSD system using video clips from millions of Tesla EVs. That connected network of vehicles, the world’s largest fleet and the ability to process the data it generates give it a major advantage over any competitor, Yin said.
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