Reuters: Tesla is browbeating the EU to approve its ‘Full Self-Driving’ tech. The pressure is working.
Reuters found Tesla used flawed safety data and fan lobbying to push European regulators for faster approval of its driver-assistance system.
- Following a Reuters investigation, Tesla is pressuring European Union regulators to approve its Full Self-Driving system, with internal emails revealing the automaker exerted undue influence over the Dutch regulator regarding safety review processes.
- Seeking European expansion, Tesla argues FSD benefits are 'locked behind bureaucracy' and claims the system reduces collision risks compared to manual driving, though seven traffic-safety researchers dispute the methodology behind these safety assertions.
- Internal emails show RDW staffers offered to 'adjust or reduce' scrutiny after Tesla complained about testing costs, raising concerns among independent experts regarding the impartiality of the safety assessment that enabled national approvals.
- Eight EU countries have granted national approvals for FSD Supervised, but the bloc-wide vote originally set for October 6 has been pushed to December, as Tesla mobilizes supporters on X to lobby officials for faster adoption.
- Investors tie much of Tesla's $1.5 trillion market value to FSD's success, yet the company faces ongoing scrutiny over its methodology and the lack of independent evidence proving the system is safer than human drivers.
8 Articles
8 Articles
Tesla is browbeating the EU to approve its ‘Full Self-Driving’ tech. The pressure is working.
Elon Musk’s EV company is running a social-media campaign blaming European traffic deaths on red tape. Its safety claims don’t hold up, experts say, but regulators are starting to buckle.
Tesla has made the approval of its supervised autonomous driving system one of its main objectives in Europe. To achieve this, the company has combined direct actions with regulatory bodies, own safety studies and an intense public campaign on social networks in which it accuses the bureaucracy of stopping a technology [...]
Lead: Tesla pushes for European FSD approval, but regulators still divided over its safety.
The American auto manufacturer Tesla exerts extensive pressure on European regulators for early approval of the autonomous driving system (Full... ~ 07.10.2026, PRIM)
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