Why is Elon Musk planning to hike Tesla’s FSD subscription rate after phasing out Autopilot mode — Explained
Billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk said Friday that he will increase subscription prices for Tesla’s Fully Self-Driving (FSD) software as it gets better, and that it could cost more than the current $99 per month.
The Tesla chief executive made the announcement in an X (formerly Twitter) post. “I should also note that $99 per month for supervised FSD will increase as FSD capabilities improve,” Elon Musk wrote.
The billionaire’s remarks come as electric vehicle maker Tesla is phasing out its Autopilot feature, a basic driver assistance system that previously included lane keeping and semi-automatic steering, in the US and Canada.
Autopilot previously came standard in Tesla cars. But as of Friday, Tesla now only offers Traffic-Aware Cruise Control as standard, according to the company’s website.
Why is Musk planning to increase the FSD subscription fee for Tesla cars?
Tesla is removing the Autopilot feature from new vehicle orders, leaving customers with FSD as the primary driver assistance option.
The move is part of Tesla’s broader effort to increase FSD subscriptions, which Musk describes as a critical part of the company’s future, according to Business Insider.
The post
According to Business Insider, adoption of FSD technology has slowed; Tesla’s CFO told investors in October last year that only 12% of Tesla owners paid for the assisted driving feature.
Increasing FSD subscriptions is also a key component of Musk’s massive Tesla pay package. The report stated that reaching 10 million active Full Self-Driving subscriptions is one of the important milestones that the Tesla CEO must achieve to achieve the full $1 trillion payout.
What is FSD and how is it different from Autopilot mode?
Full Self-Driving has the ability to drive the Tesla in most situations by making lane changes, following navigation routes, managing turns, avoiding vehicles and objects, and even parking itself or coming alongside the driver in a parking lot, but it still requires active driver control, according to a blog post from Tesla.
In a major update, the company began offering fully autonomous robotaxi rides without safety monitors in Austin on Thursday, Business Insider reported, and Musk said he expects “unsupervised” FSD will greatly increase demand for Tesla’s vehicles.
Musk also stated in his last
Meanwhile, Autopilot software included features like Autosteer, which keeps the car within lane markings, as well as traffic-aware cruise control, which maintains a set speed and can automatically slow down in response to traffic. But unlike FSD, Autopilot is not designed for advanced functions such as highway navigation, city driving, parking or summoning.
