Tesla could release ‘full self-driving’ beta software to wider audience in 2 weeks, says Elon Musk
Cars of the future may be closer than they appear.
The head of Tesla Inc. has some encouraging news for self-driving car enthusiasts. On Friday, Elon Musk said on Twitter that the company could soon expand the beta, or test, version of its “Full Self Driving” software to a wider audience.
Musk, the 49-year-old tech innovator who earlier this week became the second richest person in the world, was answering a question posted on Twitter by a self described “Cloud/Infrastructure geek, motorcyclist, auto racing enthusiast, Tesla-nerd, and technologist.”
Probably going to a wider beta in ~2 weeks
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 28, 2020
Twitter user DanBurkland asked Musk when #FSDbeta would be available in Minnesota, he wrote, referring to the beta version of the software. “Roads are dry and I’m happy to put it through its paces on our interesting roads,” he added.
“Probably going to a wider beta in [around] 2 weeks,” the Tesla CEO, who is also the co-founder of space exploration firm SpaceX, answered.
An early version of the company’s much-hyped software that promises “full self-driving” functionality was released to an undisclosed number of “expert, careful” drivers on Oct. 20.
Reviews were mixed, according to CNN. But according to an earlier announcement by Musk, the company plans to release the software widely by the end of the year.
“Regarding the Full Self-Driving beta release...I think we’re starting very slow and very cautiously because the world is a complex and messy place. And so we’re — we put it out there last night, and then we’ll see how it goes and then probably release it to more people this weekend or early next week,” Musk said during a call with investors last month.
“And then just gradually step it up until we have, hopefully, a wide release by the end of this year. And of course, as the system collects more data and — it becomes more robust,” he added.
