In This Story
Barely one-month after Elon Musk visited Beijing to meet with officials about deploying Tesla’s “Full Self-Driving” (FSD) technology in China, the company is reportedly set to register its software with local authorities.
By registering its driver-assist software with China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, Tesla will clear a path to allow internal testing of FSD on the country’s public roads, Reuters reported, citing unnamed sources with knowledge of the matter.
The automaker already offers a limited version of its driver-assist software in China for a one-time charge equivalent to about $8,828.32, per Reuters. Tesla may eventually offer FSD as a $98-per month subscription for Chinese consumers, the outlet added.
Earlier this year, Tesla offered brief free trials of its software to U.S. consumers and has repeatedly slashed its price for the technology. As of last month, FSD costs $99 per month for U.S. drivers, down from $199 per month. The automaker also offers the software for a one-time, $12,000 fee.
Musk has floated the idea of licensing FSD to Chinese EV makers. Last month, the Tesla CEO said his company was in discussions with a “major” automaker about licensing FSD, although he did not name the company.
A rollout of FSD — or a deal with a Chinese carmaker to license the software — would be a major boon for Tesla, which has seen weaker sales in the world’s largest auto market in recent months. Tesla’s sales in the Chinese market last month dropped 18% year-over-year and 30% from a month earlier, according to the China Passenger Car Association.
Tom Zhu, Tesla’s senior vice president of automotive, recently returned to his old job overseeing the Chinese market. He’s been credited with turning Tesla’s Gigafactory Shanghai into a major performer. Tesla began building the Shanghai Megafactory, which will be the company’s first dedicated energy storage facility outside the U.S., last week.
Tesla stock climbed more than 2% on Thursday.
Meet the competition
With an official launch of FSD, Tesla would join at least 10 companies offering level two autonomous driving capabilities in China, meaning that their vehicles can offer some services, such as automated lane changes and parking, but require the supervision of a human driver.
Tesla’s rivals in that space include tech giants like Huawei and Xpeng, among others. Both Xpeng and Li Auto offer technology they say can rival Tesla’s for free on their pricier models, while carmakers such as Nio provide free trials of their technology.
Pony.ai, an automated driving startup, runs its autonomous cars in limited test areas in China, while Baidu has recently launched the sixth generation of its robotaxis.
Baidu is one of less than two dozen qualified suppliers with China’s top-level mapping credentials that are applicable to driver-assistance programs, such as FSD, and an executive recently floated the idea of collaborating with Tesla on self-driving vehicles.