Elon Musk proposed trialing Tesla’s full self-driving feature in China through the deployment of robotaxis, according to the reports.
During Musk’s recent visit to China, officials reportedly expressed openness to Tesla conducting robotaxi tests in the country, viewing it as a potential model for others. However, immediate approval for Tesla’s widespread use of the Full Self-Driving (FSD) feature was not granted by Chinese authorities.
Tesla has not yet responded to requests for comment on the matter.
This report from China Daily follows Musk’s undisclosed trip to Beijing last month, where he engaged in discussions with Chinese Premier Li Qiang. During this visit, Musk received assurances regarding Tesla’s data security measures from a prominent Chinese auto association and finalized an agreement with Baidu, a Chinese tech giant, to utilize its mapping license for data collection on Chinese roads.
Before fully implementing FSD, Tesla must secure approval from Chinese regulators to collect and transfer data used for software training, a topic reportedly not addressed during Musk’s visit.
Tesla’s primary manufacturing plant outside the US is located in Shanghai, producing roughly half of its vehicles.
Musk has been steering Tesla’s focus away from affordable electric cars towards cutting-edge technologies such as autonomous driving software, robotaxis, and humanoid robots.
The company faces challenges amid declining car sales and stiff competition from Chinese brands like BYD. Tesla’s vehicle deliveries dropped by 8.5 percent in the first quarter, contributing to a 40 percent decrease in its stock price since July. Despite this, Tesla reported first-quarter profits of $1.1 billion, down from $2.51 billion a year earlier.
BYD briefly surpassed Tesla as the world’s largest electric vehicle maker in the last quarter of 2023, though Tesla reclaimed the title in the first three months of this year.
Musk has been a frequent visitor to China in recent years, including a trip in June last year.
