Ever since its introduction in October 2020, Tesla’s so-called Full Self-Driving program has been stuck in beta version, meaning it’s not finished yet.

But even so, the company has put the driver assistance feature in the hands of curious owners for a purchase price of $15,000 or a monthly subscription that ranges from $99 to $199, transforming its customer base into a paying group of beta testers.

Now though, Tesla CEO Elon Musk says that the next version of FSD – V12 – will no longer bear the “beta” tag, according to a Twitter reply to a post from Whole Mars Catalog that alleged the next version of the feature will be released “maybe later this year.”

 

As you can see, the outspoken head honcho stopped short of saying when the version change will occur – at this point, it can be in six months, one year, or three years.

Currently, FSD Beta is in version 11, which started rolling out to eligible vehicles late last year and merged the so-called full self-driving part of the software with the Autopilot highway feature into a single software stack. This is supposed to enable Tesla vehicles to seamlessly drive through the city, onto and off the highway, and into neighborhoods, all while being supervised by the driver.

By ditching “beta” from its name, Tesla’s FSD might bring a massive improvement to the way it operates, all while being a big show of confidence from the American EV maker. It’s no secret that the Austin-based firm has improved its system over the years, with the ultimate goal of offering owners a hands-free experience, but as it stands today, that promise is still quite a long way away.

With all the improvements added over time, Autopilot (which is part of FSD beta) has gotten better at navigating without driver intervention, but it’s still far from perfect. According to Consumer Reports, Tesla’s driver-assist tech is only the seventh-best system out there, behind Ford’s BlueCruise, GM’s SuperCruise, Mercedes-Benz’s Driver Assistance, BMW’s Driving Assistance Professional, Toyota’s Safety Sense 3.0, and Volkswagen’s Travel Assist.

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