Tesla is said to proceed with a plan to launch its Full Self-Driving (FSD) software in China. The EV company is on track to register the technology and aims to activate the service later this year.
According to Reuters, Tesla is getting ready to register the FSD software with China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. The registration will allow the company to test the technology internally on China's public roads.
Tesla plans to introduce version 12 of FSD to the world's largest car market in 2024, Reuters reported. CEO Elon Musk has said the latest version of the technology will help the company deliver fully self-driving systems.
The US EV giant is mulling over monthly subscriptions to sell FSD in China, according to Reuters.
A Tesla China employee sharing might hint about the project's progress. According to Sina, the employee shared online a screenshot of their Tesla vehicle's display, saying the words "Employee FSD Beta project: Registered" showed up after a software update. However, the employee could not activate any FSD features on the car.
Facing fierce competition in China, Tesla may generate more revenue in the market when it launches FSD. According to the China Passenger Car Association's (CPCA) data, Tesla sold 283,000 EVs in the first four months of 2024. The number was the second highest and represented a 7% drop from last year.
BYD remained the top passenger EV seller with 936,400 units in the same period, while Geely was ranked third with 195,600 cars.
On the same day when Musk paid an unannounced visit to China in April, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) and the National Computer Network Emergency Response Technical Team/Coordination Center of China announced that 76 car models, including Tesla Model Ys and Model 3s made in Shanghai, had passed national data security requirements. The certification was seen as a lift for Tesla's FSD roll-out.
Bloomberg previously reported that Tesla will work with China-based Baidu for mapping and navigation functions for the FSD software. Tesla will have access to Baidu's lane-level navigation and mapping services.
