Tesla’s FSD software gains second European approval

Tesla has officially launched its Full Self-Driving (Supervised) driver-assistance software in Lithuania, representing a key step in its European expansion. The launch makes Lithuania the second European country to approve the use of the software, following its initial European rollout in the Netherlands. The expansion across Europe could accelerate if RDW, the Dutch vehicle authority/regulator that approved the software, is successful in its bid for EU-wide acceptance of the technology. Other European countries are already preparing to follow suit; on Wednesday, the Greek transport ministry stated that an upcoming bill would grant approval for the software, Reuters reported.

The European expansion is financially significant for Tesla CEO Elon Musk. Musk’s $1 trillion pay package is tied to hitting several product goals, including reaching 10 million active FSD subscriptions by 2035. However, Tesla still has a long way to go to meet this target. During its first-quarter earnings call in April, the company stated that it has nearly 1.3 million paying FSD customers globally. To access the feature, users must pay a monthly subscription cost of $99, a requirement Musk announced in January.

First launched in beta in late 2020, FSD (Supervised) is a driver-assistance system that still requires active human supervision. The software has received regular updates to remove bugs and improve performance. Today, the system can handle driving maneuvers, such as steering, lane changes, and parking. However, the rollout in Europe has faced regulatory scrutiny, which has historically slowed its deployment compared to the United States. Outside of Europe and the United States, the software is available in Australia, Canada, China, Mexico, New Zealand, Puerto Rico, and South Korea, according to Tesla.

Tesla is careful to distinguish this driver-assistance system from its fully autonomous efforts. While FSD (Supervised) is widely available to consumers, FSD Unsupervised—the version intended to operate without human driver control—is not available to Tesla owners. Instead, FSD Unsupervised is currently limited to a small fleet of about 50 Tesla robotaxis operating in US cities, specifically Austin, Dallas, and Houston. Meanwhile, other products like the Optimus humanoid robot are not yet in mass production or available to consumers.

Why it matters

Making FSD available in Europe is critical to Tesla’s and CEO Elon Musk’s ambitions, as the company pushes to position itself as an AI and robotics powerhouse.