Elon Musk - Our Tesla Robotaxi Software is Almost Here

Software Updates and Features

🚗 Q: What version of Tesla's robo taxi software is currently running in Austin, Texas?
A: According to Whole Mars Blog's blog on X, Tesla's robo taxi software in Austin is running version 13.3, which is consistent with the author's experience after taking 50 rides.

🆕 Q: What new abilities does Tesla's robo taxi software demonstrate?
A: The software now has capabilities like pulling over for emergency vehicles and pulling up to hotel doors, while maintaining a driving experience similar to the author's own vehicle.

Safety and Comfort Enhancements

🏎️ Q: How can FSD's comfort and safety be improved in high-speed situations?
A: Setting target speed and max speed for FSD can improve comfort and safety, especially in scenarios requiring harder acceleration to avoid dangerous situations with cyclists and pedestrians.

🚸 Q: Why is sign reading crucial for FSD?
A: Sign reading helps FSD behave better in construction zones, lane closures, and neighborhoods by following special instructions to avoid hazards like ditches and potholes.

🕳️ Q: What feature did Elon Musk mention for preventing car damage from potholes?
A: Elon Musk mentioned pothole detection as a future feature for Tesla vehicles about 4-5 years ago to improve safety and prevent car damage.

Navigation and Emergency Response

🗺️ Q: What is a major fail point for FSD regarding navigation?
A: Navigation issues due to incorrect maps cause wrong turns and lost routes, highlighting the need for updated navigation data to improve route planning and turn execution.

🚨 Q: Why is emergency vehicle detection important for FSD?
A: Emergency vehicle detection is critical for FSD to improve safety by reacting with caution to police cars, ambulances, and fire trucks.

Speed Management

🏫 Q: How can FSD improve safety in school zones?
A: Implementing school zone speed limits that adjust based on time of day and school schedules can improve safety and prevent accidents, similar to context-aware speed limits in Europe.

User Experience

👥 Q: How does the robo taxi driving experience compare to personal Tesla vehicles?
A: The driving feels eerily similar to the author's own vehicle, suggesting that the robo taxi software is well-integrated and polished.

Future Developments

🔮 Q: What potential improvements for FSD were mentioned in the video?
A: Potential improvements include better sign reading, pothole detection, emergency vehicle response, and context-aware speed limits for various scenarios.

Robotaxi Software Development

🚗 Tesla's Austin robotaxi software is running on version 13.5 or higher, with potential for version 14 or 14.1, and will be merged into the main branch soon for all Tesla vehicles.

🔢 The upcoming wide release of robotaxi software will feature a 4.5 times increase in parameters, significantly enhancing its capabilities.

🚨 Emergency vehicle handling, destination options, and improved parking lot performance have already been demonstrated in the Austin robotaxi software.

FSD Improvements and Release Timeline

🗓️ Tesla's FSD release notes have been awaiting updates for nearly a year, including 3x model size scaling, 3x model context length scaling, and audio inputs for emergency vehicles.

📅 Elon Musk stated that the Austin robotaxi software will be available on all FSD vehicles by the end of Q3, with a phased rollout starting with early access customers.

Current FSD Capabilities and Limitations

🚦 Tesla's FSD system remains at Level 2 autonomy, requiring constant driver attention despite its ability to perform many driving maneuvers without interventions.

🚸 Phantom braking, swerving for shadows, and unnecessary lane changes are reported issues with the current FSD system.

🔴 A serious concern is FSD occasionally running red lights after being stopped, albeit only when clear and at low speeds.

Areas for Improvement

🕳️ Pothole detection is a highly requested but rarely implemented feature in FSD, crucial for preventing vehicle damage.

🗺️ Navigation issues, including incorrect data and lane positioning, remain a significant problem for FSD, particularly in the Cybertruck.

🏎️ FSD still struggles with accurately reading speed limit signs and adjusting vehicle speed accordingly, causing frustration for users.

🅿️ The system has shown improvements in parking lot navigation and destination options, including pulling over and hotel door pickup capabilities.

• 00:00 🚗 Tesla's robotaxi software is almost ready, with a more advanced model set for release later this year and significant self-driving improvements expected in Q3.
  • Tesla's robotaxi software, likely version 13.3 or higher, is nearly complete and its driving capabilities feel similar to the company's current full self-driving software.
  • An advanced robotaxi model with 4.5 times more parameters is expected to be ready for wide release later this year.
  • Elon Musk hints that Tesla's self-driving capability will see significant improvement in Q3 with the integration of upgrades from the Austin robo taxi build.
• 02:20 🤖 Tesla's Full Self-Driving software for "robo taxi-like" experience in personal vehicles is nearly ready, pending regulatory approvals, with expected improvements by September 30th.
  • Tesla aims to roll out improvements to its Full Self-Driving software, potentially enabling a "robo taxi-like" experience in personal vehicles, pending regulatory approvals.
  • The software for Tesla's robotaxi is nearly ready, with significant improvements in model scaling, navigation, and emergency handling, but regulatory issues have delayed its rollout in Europe.
  • Cybertruck currently lacks Full Self-Driving capabilities, but a forthcoming Roboaxi software may integrate some of these features.
  • Tesla's Robo Taxi software is expected to improve by September 30th, with better performance in parking lots and emergency situations, and while timelines have historically been unreliable, recent updates suggest more accurate projections.
• 05:48 🚗 Tesla's FSD is improving towards Level 3 autonomy, but remains classified as Level 2 due to legal constraints, while ongoing enhancements are driven by user feedback.
  • FSD is not perfect but can handle many drives with minimal interventions, primarily for comfort.
  • Elon Musk notes that while Tesla's software isn't yet at Level 3, Mercedes has achieved this level of semi-autonomous driving in specific circumstances, allowing drivers to relax and take their eyes off the road.
  • Despite the current system's capabilities resembling level three autonomy, Tesla vehicles remain classified as level two due to legal and safety requirements, with ongoing improvements expected based on user feedback.
• 07:53 🤖 Elon Musk discusses updates to Tesla's Autopilot software to improve FSD, including preventing left lane camping and adding a "target speed" feature.
  • FSD tends to stay in the left lane on highways due to driver profile settings.
  • Elon Musk emphasizes the need for an update to Tesla's Autopilot software to prevent vehicles from camping in the left lane, even in "hurry mode", and also discusses issues with vehicles slowing down on rural roads.
  • Elon Musk wants Tesla's FSD software to have a "target speed" feature, in addition to a "max speed" setting, to allow the car to adjust its speed while maintaining a safe and reasonable pace.
• 10:34 🤖 Elon Musk announces Tesla's robotaxi software is almost ready, prioritizing safety and navigation in dense downtown areas.
  • Tesla is prioritizing the development of robo taxis for dense downtown areas, focusing on slow speeds to ensure safety for cyclists and pedestrians.
  • Tesla's robotaxi software needs to balance safety and comfort by sometimes accelerating quickly through intersections to avoid being hit by speeding cross traffic.
  • Elon Musk emphasizes the importance of Tesla's FSD software being able to read signs, such as lane closure signs, to improve driving safety and navigation.
• 12:58 🤖 Elon Musk announces Tesla's robotaxi software is almost ready, enabling semi-autonomous driving with reduced driver attention and setting the stage for a future robotaxi feature.
  • Wearing sunglasses helps when interacting with Tesla's software, as it tracks head position instead of eye movement, allowing users to look down at their screen without triggering warnings.
  • Tesla's upcoming software will enable semi-autonomous driving with reduced driver attention, leveraging data to optimize performance and setting the stage for its robotaxi feature.
  • Elon Musk highlights the importance of implementing features like avoiding illegal maneuvers, increasing following distance, and enhancing pothole detection in Tesla's robotaxi software.
• 15:12 🤖 Elon Musk says Tesla's Full Self-Driving software still needs improvement on issues like misreading signs, phantom braking, and running red lights.
  • Elon Musk notes that Tesla's FSD software still needs improvement on issues such as misreading speed limit signs, phantom braking, swerving for shadows, and unexpected lane changes.
  • Elon Musk mentions that Tesla's Full Self-Driving software sometimes runs red lights, but usually when it does, the light is about to turn green, although it can also make mistakes and drive through a red light.
  • Tesla's Full Self-Driving software occasionally makes errors, such as driving on the wrong side of the road and ignoring road signs, but shows improvements in navigating obstacles.
  • Tesla's Full Self-Driving software has significant issues with navigation data and railroad crossing safety, requiring updates to maps and improvement in handling flashing lights and arm guards.
• 18:11 🚦 Tesla's Full Self-Driving currently struggles with school zones, but future RoboTaxi software may address this issue once schools resume.

WatchUrl: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ohOjvqLiJ48