Elon Musk thinks the first 100% autonomous Tesla will be ready “later this year”
Elon Musk estimated in video during a conference in Shanghai that Tesla was very close to developing its first 100% autonomous electric car, possibly “later this year”.
“In terms of where Tesla is right now, I think we’re very close to achieving autonomous driving without human supervision.”Elon Musk said in a videoconference for the opening of a conference on artificial intelligence in Shanghai, China. “It’s just speculation, but I think we’ll reach full autonomous driving, maybe stage four or five, I think later this year”added the leader, mentioning the two most advanced levels of autonomous driving, which implies that human assistance is no longer necessary.
The Twitter owner admitted his previous predictions were wrong, but said he feels Tesla is “closer than ever to its goal”. He has indeed already exceeded the dates he had given for the launch of such a vehicle, the technology of which raises many questions in the United States.
China is the world’s largest market for electric vehicles and Elon Musk announced in April that his company would build a second mega-factory in Shanghai. His presence at this conference, even on video, shows his willingness to maintain good relations with China, after an in-person visit in May.
In the first quarter, Tesla reported a 24% drop in net profit to $2.5 billion as the electric car giant lowered prices to stimulate demand and battle competition.
