Tesla will be releasing the latest version of its Full Self-Driving (FSD) software in a limited beta in the coming weeks, which will allow vehicles to drive with zero intervention, Tesla CEO Elon Musk tweeted on October 9.
Waymo is impressive, but a highly specialized solution. The Tesla approach is a general solution. The latest build is capable of zero intervention drives. Will release limited beta in a few weeks.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 8, 2020
Tesla vehicles with the complete "Full Self-Driving" package will not require any commands to be input to the car. Thanks to the application of this technology, Tesla also has the possibility to launch a fleet of self-driving taxis in the future, the early stage may be used for Tesla's internal network car service.
Musk had previously expressed the idea that Tesla would launch a fleet of self-driving taxis in 2021 during its Q1 2020 earnings call, saying that it would not be available to all markets, but only to some.
In July, Musk had said at the opening of the World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC) that Tesla's R&D team had developed something close to Level 5 autopilot, and expressed confidence that the basic features of the technology would be developed this year.
Level 5 autopilot in this context means "fully automated driving", which means "zero-interference" autopilot technology that does not require human intervention in any scenario.
In October 2018, Tesla pushed the NOA (Navigate on Autopilot) feature, unlocking advanced autopilot functions in highway conditions.
NOA allows drivers to pre-input a start and endpoint on the car's navigation, confirm a navigation route, and have the vehicle automatically follow the route.
After Tesla spearheaded the NOA in its usual aggressive style, the real-world experience wasn't perfect, but as the only car company in the world to offer this feature, the NOA solidified Tesla's position as a leader in autopilot technology.
This position brought Tesla a large number of fans and endless room for imagination.
Now, this position of Tesla in the navigation-assisted driving market is going to be challenged.
On September 26, 2020, Nio CEO William Li Bin announced that the company will launch the Navigate On Pilot (NOP) feature, making Nio the second automotive brand in the world to implement this feature.
Taking a step forward from Tesla's NOA, Nio will enable the company's NOP feature not only on highways, but also on urban expressways in almost any city in the country (cities covered by high-precision maps).
The unlocking of urban elevated roads means that the pilot-assisted NOP mode is available on essentially all structured, closed roads.
The unlocking of these scenarios will significantly increase the usage of the NOP function, and car owners will be able to turn on the NOP for easier driving during their daily trips and weekday commutes.
The launch of Nio NOP breaks Tesla's dominance in the navigation assisted driving track, and will also bring additional competitive pressure to Chinese counterparts, forcing them to speed up the pace of entering the "Pilot Assisted Driving" track and triggering a new round of autopilot arms race.
