Tesla CEO Elon Musk recently addressed the delay in shipping the company’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) technology to Europe, even as it began rolling out in China within the past week. The clarification came via a tweet on X, where Musk responded to questions about the disparity in FSD deployment timelines between the two regions. While Tesla fans in China are now experiencing the latest version of the supervised FSD system, European customers are still waiting due to regulatory hurdles.
According to posts on X and recent updates, Musk explained that the delay in Europe stems from a lack of regulatory approvals. Unlike China, where Tesla secured tentative approval and launched FSD following Musk’s engagement with officials, Europe’s complex regulatory landscape has slowed progress. Musk noted that Tesla must navigate a mountain of paperwork, with the Netherlands serving as the primary regulatory authority for Tesla in the European Union. The approval process involves a review by the EU in May 2025, meaning supervised FSD might not arrive in Europe until at least then—potentially later if the cadence shifts to a 12-month review cycle.
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In contrast, Tesla’s FSD rollout in China moved swiftly after Musk’s surprise visit to Beijing in April 2024, where he met with Premier Li Qiang and secured key endorsements. By early 2025, Tesla began deploying FSD in China, leveraging partnerships like its mapping deal with Baidu and a Shanghai data center to comply with local laws. This rapid progress highlights China’s strategic importance as Tesla’s second-largest market and its relatively streamlined approval process compared to Europe.
Musk’s tweet emphasized that while FSD technology is ready—boasting over 3 billion cumulative miles driven globally—Europe’s regulatory environment remains a bottleneck. He expressed frustration with the pace, stating, “America innovates, Europe regulates,” and suggested that no amount of effort from Tesla can speed up the EU’s timeline. Meanwhile, Tesla continues to refine FSD, with recent v13 releases earning praise in North America, where it’s widely available.
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For Tesla enthusiasts in Europe, the wait continues, while China’s rollout marks a significant milestone in Musk’s vision for autonomous driving. As Tesla prepares to showcase unsupervised FSD and robotaxi capabilities later in 2025, the focus remains on overcoming Europe’s bureaucratic challenges to bring the technology to its eager drivers.