Tesla Inc pushed back the roll-out of its most advanced driver-assistance features in China, reflecting regulators’ caution in the world’s largest automobile market over the rapidly evolving technology.
Broader approval of what the electric vehicle-maker calls Full Self-Driving, or FSD – which requires constant human supervision – is "still not there,” executives said Wednesday on an earnings call in the US. Approval is now expected by the third quarter, Tesla added.
Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk, known for setting early and aggressive targets for his businesses, had given earlier projections that the software would receive a commercial green light as soon as February. While Tesla has received partial approvals and started pilot test launches over a year ago, nationwide release remains elusive, keeping a critical growth lever for the automaker just out of reach.
The regulatory bottleneck underscores the persistent challenges Tesla faces in navigating data security and autonomous driving standards in different regions. China has exercised a high degree of scrutiny of the marketing and deployment of high-level assisted-driving technologies following several high-profile accidents last year. Tesla’s FSD also won’t be marketed under that name in the country.
The automaker’s European expansion of the technology is gaining momentum after the company secured critical regulatory approval in the Netherlands, which is set to serve as a beachhead for an EU-wide launch planned for the second quarter.
Despite the wait, Tesla remains bullish on China, betting that the eventual roll-out will fuel "incremental demand” for its ageing fleet and provide a necessary edge against increasingly sophisticated local rivals such as BYD Co and Xiaomi Inc – Bloomberg
