Elon Musk is reportedly visiting Beijing to discuss the possibility of using autonomous driving on Tesla cars in China, UNN reports citing the BBC.
Details
Musk wants to enable Full Self Driving (FSD) in China and send data collected in the country abroad to train algorithms. FSD is available in countries including the United States, but not in China.
The news comes after a report in the United States linked Tesla's autonomous driving mode to at least 13 accidents, including one fatality.
China is Tesla's second largest market. Other automakers, such as Guangzhou-based Xpeng, are trying to compete with Tesla by introducing similar self-driving features.
The electric vehicle manufacturer has previously taken steps to provide assurances to the Chinese authorities regarding the deployment of FSD in the country, including the establishment of a data center in Shanghai to process Chinese consumer data in accordance with local laws.
The US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said it is investigating whether the recall successfully addresses safety concerns related to Tesla's driver assistance system.
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The NHTSA said that despite the requirements that drivers remain focused on the road and be ready to take over whenever autonomous driving is activated, drivers involved in an accident "were not sufficiently engaged." The regulator's analysis was conducted before Tesla claimed that the recall would solve the problem.
Tesla's software must ensure that drivers are attentive and that this function is used only in appropriate conditions, such as when driving on the highway.
Musk has been promising that Tesla will be able to operate as an autonomous "robotaxi" for many years. In 2015, he said that Tesla would achieve "full autonomy" by 2018. And in 2019, he said that by next year, the company would have a working "robotaxi".
This month, Tesla's CEO announced that he would unveil the company's "robotaxi" in August.
Critics accuse Musk of constantly hyping the prospects of full autonomous driving to prop up the company's share price, which has fallen amid problems such as falling demand for electric vehicles worldwide and competition from cheaper Chinese manufacturers. Musk denies the allegations.
The automaker's profit fell sharply in the first three months of the year to $1.13 billion, down from $2.51 billion in in 2023. This year, its shares have fallen by 43%.