Tesla renamed its Full Self-Driving (Supervised) package to Assisted Driving in Europe as it pushes for approvals across the continent.
What they're saying: Germany's Federal Ministry of Transport said Tesla's FSD name was "somewhat misleading," describing it as a driver assistance system that can support accelerating, braking and steering, and adding that "the driver must remain attentive at all times."
Zoom in: The package keeps the Full Self-Driving (Supervised) name in the United States, where Tesla sells it as a $99 per month subscription. Tesla reported 1.48 million active FSD subscriptions in its second-quarter update.
The backstory: A California judge ruled in December 2025 that Tesla had engaged in deceptive marketing around Autopilot and FSD by falsely implying they were fully automated. Tesla has countersued the state DMV over the false advertiser label.
- Reuters reported this week that Tesla's pressure on European regulators, which it described as browbeating, pushed some to reduce the intensity of their safety tests.
The other side: Missy Cummings, an engineering professor at George Mason University, said a rename falls short of making the system safe for broad release and that European agencies are "ignoring both past and ongoing NHTSA investigations."
- "The EU is struggling to keep up in the AI marketplace," Cummings said. "Musk sees this and is definitely bullying them as a result."
Why it matters: Europe is where Tesla sales are recovering as fuel costs climb, so approval there is worth real volume. The rename also concedes the point safety regulators have pressed for years: the car still needs a driver.
