Tesla’s Full Self-Driving software is creeping into Europe

Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (Supervised) driver assistance software is now available in Lithuania, the second European country to approve its use, as the company pushes to position itself as an AI and robotics powerhouse and not just an automaker.

Making FSD available in Europe — which kicked off last month when the Dutch regulator RDW approved its use — is critical to Tesla’s and CEO Elon Musk’s ambitions. It’s also financially important for Musk, whose $1 trillion pay package is tied to hitting a number of product goals, including hitting “10 million active FSD subscriptions” by 2035.

Tesla has a long way to go before it hits that 10 million subscription figure. The company said during its first-quarter earnings call in April that it has nearly 1.3 million paying FSD customers globally.

Tesla’s FSD (Supervised) first launched in beta in late 2020. The advanced driver assistance system, which still requires active driver supervision, has had regular updates since then to remove bugs, and improve reliability and performance. Today, the system can handle driving maneuvers, such as steering, lane changes, and parking. Tesla used to allow owners to pay a one-time fee for the software; in January, Musk announced the only way to access the feature would be through a monthly subscription that is currently $99.

The rollout of FSD in Europe hasn’t been fast or furious — regulatory scrutiny has traditionally slowed deployment compared with the United States. Today, FSD is only available in the Netherlands, and now Lithuania. The rollout could accelerate if Dutch regulator RDW, which oversaw the first European approval, is successful in its bid for EU-wide acceptance.

Meanwhile, European countries can recognize Dutch certification and allow for FSD. And a number of them appear to be in the queue.

The Greek transport ​ministry said Wednesday that an upcoming bill would grant approval of FSD, Reuters reported. Belgium is also expected to authorize the use of FSD, following the same authorization process used by RDW.

Outside of Europe, FSD is available in Australia, Canada, China, Mexico, New Zealand, Puerto Rico, South Korea, and the United States. 

FSD (Supervised) isn’t the only product that fits within Musk’s vision of turning Tesla into a leader in AI and robotics, but it is the only one that is actually available to a wide swath of consumers.

FSD Unsupervised, a version of the software that handles all driving without any expectation of a human driver taking control, is not available to Tesla owners. It is used in a small fleet of about 50 Tesla robotaxis that operate in Austin, Dallas, and Houston.

Tesla’s Optimus humanoid robot, meanwhile, is not yet in mass production or available to consumers.