Tesla has slashed the price of its Full Self-Driving (FSD) software subscription to $99 per month, down from $199 per month, as the electric vehicle maker aims to boost adoption of its advanced driver assistance system ahead of first-quarter earnings.
The price cut comes a couple of weeks after Tesla launched a free one-month trial of FSD for every customer in the U.S. with a compatible Tesla. That trial is still ongoing. Formerly known as FSD Beta, Tesla is now referring to the software as ‘Supervised FSD’ to make it clear that the software doesn’t turn Teslas into autonomous vehicles and human drivers still need to supervise the not-so-self-driving software.
FSD can handle certain advanced driving tasks like making lane changes, navigating around vehicles and objects, following a driver’s navigation route and more.
The FSD price cut comes the same week that Tesla released more tweaks to its latest V12 version of the software to certain users. Tesla says the latest software upgrades FSD’s city-streets driving capability to run entirely on neural networks.
More drivers with FSD doesn’t only mean more money for Tesla. It also means more video data which the EV maker can use to train its neural nets and improve the product. Tesla might also be angling for more training data so it can meet CEO Elon Musk’s promise to unveil a Tesla robotaxi in August.
However, as TechCrunch has previously pointed out, greater FSD accessibility might increase the likelihood of drivers signing up who aren’t doing their part to supervise the software and may find themselves unable to take over if something goes wrong.
Tesla doesn’t appear to have changed the cost of a one-time purchase of FSD, which is still $12,000 in the U.S.
techcrunch.com
