The driver assistance system in Tesla electric vehicles prior to 2026. Although Autopilot drives the car under normal conditions, it requires drivers to have their hands on the wheel at all times. Accidents have occurred because drivers did not pay attention or fell asleep.
From Autopilot to Full Self-Driving (FSD)
In 2026, Tesla dropped Autopilot on new cars although older vehicles still have it. All new Teslas have adaptive cruise control, blind spot monitoring, rear cross path detection, lane departure and emergency braking, which have been common on many new cars for more than a decade. See
automotive safety systems.
For a monthly fee, Full Self-Driving (FSD) is an option. For navigation, FSD uses Google Maps combined with Tesla's proprietary routing system. Tesla's self-driving capability is derived from AI-based neural networks that have been trained on millions of miles of video obtained from actual Teslas on the road.
Tesla FSD is pretty much Level 5 self driving. It will go to a destination and park itself without human intervention; however, it requires a person to be sitting in the driver's seat. See
neural network,
adaptive cruise control,
Tesla AI chips,
self-driving car and
Tesla.