Tesla denies FSD collaboration rumors with Baidu

Today, Tesla has officially responded to recent reports, clarifying that its collaboration with Chinese tech giant Baidu is limited to map navigation. This statement contradicts earlier speculation suggesting a broader partnership aimed at enhancing the performance of Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) system in China.

The clarification comes a day after a Reuters report indicated that Tesla was engaging in in-depth cooperation with Baidu to leverage the latter’s advanced mapping technology. The goal of this partnership, according to the report, was to address the challenges Tesla’s FSD technology has faced in adapting to the unique road conditions in China.

The Reuters report detailed that the collaboration between Tesla and Baidu was primarily focused on optimizing the FSD Version 13 software. It claimed that Baidu had deployed a team of mapping engineers to Tesla’s Beijing office to facilitate the integration of Baidu’s navigation map information, including lane markings and traffic light data, into the FSD system. This move was reportedly intended to improve FSD’s ability to navigate China’s complex road networks through more accurate and real-time map data. 

However, Tesla’s official response explicitly denies these claims, asserting that the partnership does not extend to improving its intelligent assisted driving system.

This denial follows recent criticism from some Tesla owners in China regarding the performance of the assisted driving system. Reports suggest that the FSD V13 software, which was recently rolled out in China, has not been adequately trained on local road conditions. This has allegedly led to instances of traffic violations while the vehicle is in assisted driving mode, such as running red lights, incorrect lane changes, and driving in bus lanes.

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It is understood that Tesla faces limitations in training its FSD system for the Chinese market due to data regulations in China, which restrict the company’s ability to utilize data from its approximately 2 million electric vehicles in the country. Furthermore, US regulations reportedly prohibit the training of artificial intelligence software for this purpose within China.

Source: Mydrivers