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Tesla to require supervised FSD V12 test rides during vehicle deliveries: leaked Musk email
An apparent leaked email from Tesla CEO Elon Musk suggests that the electric vehicle maker would be updating its vehicle delivery process. As per the seemingly leaked email, which was shared on social media platform X, Tesla employees are now required to give short FSD V12.3.1 rides to customers who are taking delivery of their cars.
The apparent Elon Musk email was initially shared on X by longtime FSD Beta tester @WholeMarsBlog, who has been testing Tesla’s advanced driver-assist system since its limited rollout in late 2020. The email was short, but its message was clear — Elon Musk wants consumers to realize just how good FSD V12.3.1 works in real-world settings.
Here is the email pic.twitter.com/L4zEXv4sq6— Whole Mars Catalog (@WholeMarsBlog) March 25, 2024
Following is the alleged leaked Elon Musk email.
From: Elon Musk
To: Everybody
Going forward, it is mandatory in North America to install and activate FSD V12.3.1 and take customers on a short test ride before handing over the car.
Almost no one actually realizes how well (supervised) FSD actually works.
I know this will slow down the delivery process, but it is nonetheless a hard requirement.
Thanks,
Elon
This is a HUGE change on three fronts:
1, it shows just how confident Elon is about the quality of FSD
2, it will be a brilliant technique to get people to subscribe
3, it's good to show limitations and how FSD works before getting into one@elonmusk I suggest you give away 1-2… https://t.co/6OdYiqxLd6— DrKnowItAll (@DrKnowItAll16) March 25, 2024
The alleged leaked Elon Musk email hints at a number of important updates for Tesla. For one, it would appear that FSD has reached a point where Musk is now confident enough to market it more assertively to consumers. During the early days of Tesla, owners would joke that the best way to convert an EV skeptic is to just give them a ride in an electric car. Having customers experience FSD firsthand as part of their vehicle delivery experience could have a similar effect.
Another notable aspect of the seemingly leaked Musk email was the CEO’s emphasis on supervised FSD. Over the years, Musk has been very optimistic about Tesla achieving fully autonomous driving with zero human input. By promoting supervised FSD, it would appear that Musk has seen the value in simply promoting FSD’s current iteration, even if it’s not a fully autonomous driving system yet. Supervised FSD, after all, is arguably already one of the most robust driver-assist suites in the market today.
This could dramatically increase FSD take rates especially if coupled with a 0-3 month free trial of FSD.
We est every +10pp improvement in global FSD take rate can increase $TSLA EPS by $.10/share. Every +10pp improvement in the North American FSD take rate can increase $TSLA… https://t.co/AsL9JrzO5E— Gary Black (@garyblack00) March 25, 2024
Tesla bull and Wall Street veteran Gary Black of The Future Fund has noted that the CEO’s directive could end up increasing FSD take rates among consumers, especially if the EV maker couples it with a free FSD trial period. Black noted that such updates could bring some tailwinds to TSLA stock.
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Tesla Cybercab is using a unique strategy for picking up the correct rider, which is a crucial part of ride-hailing to ensure people end up in the right place and are charged the correct price.
Cybercab will utilize an RGB strip in its front light bar that will illuminate in a variety of different colors to mark itself.
This identifying mark will also appear in the Robotaxi app, giving riders in the same location a notable distinction in an effort to avoid any confusion regarding who should get in each vehicle.
🚨 Tesla is using different light bar colors to help riders understand which vehicle is theirs
Pretty cool strategy pic.twitter.com/eGMpEMeRpc
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) August 27, 2026
Other ride-hailing services use similar strategies: Lyft and Uber rides are recognizable through driver identity, vehicle type and color, as well as license plate. Waymo will display the rider’s initials on top of the vehicle, letting them know that the specific vehicle for them has arrived.
Tesla’s strategy is unique and interesting, but there are some flaws. Cybercab’s main purpose is aimed toward being an autonomous ride for all, including those who have disabilities like being blind or even color blind.
Tesla will likely have something in the pipeline for those who cannot see colors or have limited vision. There will definitely be multiple ways to identify which vehicle is the one that “you” specifically ordered.
Cybercab is set to start giving public rides next Thursday, September 3, in Austin, as it announced a dedicated event last week and invited many members of the Tesla community.
Additionally, members of the public will be invited as well. Tesla has been offering employee rides in Cybercab for nearly two months.
Tesla has said goodbye to one customization option for its vehicles: the wrap service it launched several years ago.
After launching an in-house wrap service in August 2020 for the first time in China. In the U.S., it launched in October 2023. Tesla continued to expand the program and adjust it with better pricing and fewer options for the Cybertruck.
By December 2023, it was giving owners of the Model 3, Model Y, and the Cybertruck the opportunity to give their vehicle a fresh look with a vinyl wrap.
Tesla revamps in-house vinyl wrap service with better pricing
It was only available in five locations: Costa Mesa, Oceanside, Santa Clara, West Covina, all in California, and Seattle, Washington.
However, Tesla made some big adjustments to its shop, and the wrap service is officially gone:
Tesla has made a LOT of changes to its online shop recently — price increases, price cuts, new options, and several products being removed entirely.
Some of the biggest increases are wheel covers. 👀
📈 PRICE INCREASES
• 2017-2023 | Model 3 Aero Wheel Cover — Style: Refresh…— Phoenix Self-Driving 🐦🔥 (@PhoenixFSD) August 25, 2026
Wraps are very popular across the Tesla lineup, especially since the company offers relatively few colors. Many choose to wrap their Teslas with interesting colors, patterns, or even finishes, turning their cars from glossy to satin or matte.
However, Tesla’s wrap service was so limited geographically that it never really had a chance to get off the ground or compete with local shops. Every area in the United States is now overflowing with detailing shops, mobile detailers, and other automotive specialists, many of whom perform wrap services.
Tesla’s service was confined to the Pacific time zone and only spanned across two states. It was never going to be something Tesla was a major competitor in, nor was it going to disrupt the wrapping industry. Now that the program has ended, it seems pretty ideal to believe it was always going to be a short-term thing.
Along with the wrap service, Tesla removed several other products, but nothing too crazy. The Model 3 Door Pocket and Cupholder Liners, the Model S 19″ Magnetite Wheel and Winter Tire Package, Model X/Y Ski/Snowboard Carrier for Hitch Rack, Tesla’s Electric Summer Party Tee, and the Electric Summer Tee were the other items the company totally eliminated from its online shop.
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Tesla Robotaxi fleet gets a brain upgrade ahead of Cybercab launch event
Tesla’s Robotaxi service now runs longer hours nationwide as its unsupervised fleet quietly grows larger.
Tesla’s Robotaxi service just got easier to catch, with the company’s official Robotaxi account noting that rides are now available from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., seven days a week, across its operating footprint. The account also said its unsupervised fleet is “a lot bigger” than before, though without specifics. The bigger change is what Tesla says upgraded intelligence in vehicle distribution and routing is what’s actually cutting wait times, not a new Full Self-Driving version.
While Tesla did not name the team behind the upgrade, the language points to its AI and fleet software group rather than the driving stack itself. Vehicle distribution and routing in Robotaxi has functioned mostly as a dispatch problem with the software deciding which idle car goes to which rider, and how far it has to travel to get there. “Upgraded intelligence” suggests a smarter version of that dispatch logic, likely using demand forecasting to position idle cars near where riders are about to request them rather than reacting once a request comes in. Tesla’s AI division has built similar prediction systems for other parts of the business, including the neural networks that power FSD itself, so applying that same approach to fleet logistics would be a natural extension rather than a new discipline for the team.
Robotaxi now runs 6am to 10pm, 7 days/week
Unsupervised fleet is a lot bigger
Also, upgraded intelligence in vehicle distribution & routing means you wait less pic.twitter.com/UFZ4bqg2dZ
— Tesla Robotaxi (@robotaxi) August 26, 2026
Tesla is also about a week away from a separate robotaxi milestone. The company plans to launch Cybercab, its purpose built two seat robotaxi with no steering wheel or pedals, in Austin on September 3. Cybercab has been giving employees rides on public and private roads for weeks, and the September event is expected to fold those vehicles into the existing Robotaxi fleet within days of the launch.
Thank you so much @Tesla for inviting us to the Cybercab launch in Austin! 🤠 pic.twitter.com/F1rAR8zd5O
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) August 22, 2026
Austin previously ran Robotaxi from 6 a.m. to 2 a.m. as of last September, a schedule set before the service expanded into Dallas, Houston, Miami, Tampa, Orlando and the Bay Area. Wednesday’s post did not specify whether that extended overnight window still applies in Austin specifically or whether 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. is now the standard across every market. Tesla’s post, visible on its official Robotaxi account, framed the change simply as fewer riders waiting around for a car.
Whether the wider hours hold once Cybercab enters the fleet next week is the next thing worth watching. Tesla has tended to expand Robotaxi in increments, first geofence, then hours, then fleet size, and each step so far has arrived without much advance notice.
Police sergeant recounts his Neuralink journey with Elon Musk’s brain chip
Tesla Cybercab uses a unique strategy for picking up the right rider
