Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, has been generating a lot of buzz lately around the upcoming Full Self-Driving (FSD) v12.4 update.

Promising a substantial enhancement in Tesla's autonomous driving capabilities, Musk claims this update will allow the car to drive for a year without requiring driver intervention. However, there are notable downsides to consider.

The Delayed Rollout of Tesla FSD V12.4

In early May, Musk announced that Tesla was preparing to release the FSD v12.4 update. Now, as we enter June, the update is still not available to the customer fleet.

Musk recently stated that the update has been delivered to Tesla employees and will soon be available to a limited number of external customers:

FSD 12.4.1 releases today to Tesla employees. If that goes well, then it will be released to a limited number of external customers this weekend.

There are a massive number of changes to this build. It should arguably be called v13, but we’re sticking to 12 😂

Two other…

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 5, 2024

 

"FSD 12.4.1 releases today to Tesla employees. If that goes well, then it will be released to a limited number of external customers this weekend. There are a massive number of changes to this build. It should arguably be called v13, but we're sticking to 12," the tech billionaire told the employees.

While this makes the update about a month late, Musk is promoting it as an upgrade worth the wait, which is not an uncommon strategy for the CEO.

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Major Improvements Promised

According to a Teslarati report, Musk has raised expectations by highlighting significant improvements in the FSD system. He previously mentioned that the update would come without the need for steering wheel nags and could drive "5 to 10 times more miles per intervention."

Recently, he escalated this claim, suggesting the car will drive "over a year" before requiring any intervention. However, this ambitious statement comes with an important condition: the system will achieve this once all known bugs are fixed.

Skepticism and Reality Check

Despite Musk's optimistic projections, skepticism remains. Electrek, a notable source for Tesla news, has pointed out that while these promises are exciting, they hinge heavily on Tesla's ability to fix known issues.

For example, Tesla's auto wipers have long been criticized for their performance, raising doubts about the company's ability to deliver a bug-free autonomous driving experience.

Electrek's Fred Lambert shared his experiences with FSD v12.3, noting that while impressive, it still had significant issues, leading to bad interventions.

He emphasized that consistent and meaningful improvements through software updates are essential for building trust in Tesla's autonomous driving efforts.

Realistic Expectations

As Tesla prepares to roll out FSD v12.4 to a limited number of external customers, it is crucial to maintain realistic expectations.

While the update promises groundbreaking advancements, the reality of software development means that bugs and issues are inevitable. The true test will be Tesla's ability to deliver consistent improvements and address these problems swiftly.

Elon Musk's hype around the Tesla Full Self-Driving v12.4 update sets high expectations for the future of autonomous driving. However, as with any significant technological advancement, patience and realistic expectations are essential.

While the promise of a year-long, intervention-free driving experience is tantalizing, the true measure of success will be in the update's real-world performance and Tesla's responsiveness to any emerging issues.

With the American automaker pushing the boundaries of autonomous driving, the world watches closely, hopeful yet cautious, waiting to see if Musk's ambitious vision becomes a reality.

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