Tesla Full Self-Driving (FSD) Beta 10.69.3.1 has been out for some time now, and Teslarati talked to a few beta testers about the update.
Below are some notes and observations about v.10.69.3.1 from Tesla FSD Beta Testers.
FSD Beta 10.69.3.1 and Lanes
Lane selection has been one of the issues that most FSD Beta testers bring up when they talk to Teslarati. Before 10.69.3.1, FSD Beta reportedly had trouble understanding when to switch lanes, which one to switch to, or when to remain in a lane. FSD Beta testers are still experiencing lane selection issues.
“Not only has lane selection in anticipating a turn been a step back for me, lane selection whilst performing dual lane left-hand turns still suffer. The car doesn’t stay in its assigned lane but drifts. This does not happen on right turns,” said Les, a long-time FSD Beta tester.
“Lane selection still has issues. Most of the time it’s ok, but occasionally, it does strange things like changing into the right lane momentarily, then back to the left when there is an upcoming left-hand turn,” noted FSD Beta tester Sandy.
Turn Issues in FSD Beta 10.69.3.1
Les and fellow FSD Beta tester Sandy mentioned other lane issues related to turns. Les noted that one of the biggest step back with FSD Beta 10.69.3.1 occurs when the car faces an upcoming turn.
“On previous builds, the car would only occasionally move in the opposite lane direction of an upcoming turn. On this build, virtually every turn I had upcoming, when the car got within half a mile of said turn, it would signal and move into the lane of the opposite direction,” Les said.
“Virtually every right turn I’ve had upcoming, the car, inexplicably, signals and changes into the left-hand lane. Same for left-hand turns, within half a mile out the car signaled and changed into the right-hand lane. Confounding to say the least, to the point of comedy,” he added.
Sandy noticed that his car requires interventions or disconnects at stop signs sometimes. In the past, other FSD Beta testers have mentioned that their vehicle experiences jerky movements or their signal lights turn off and on during intersections, traffic lights, and stop signs. It’s as if the car is deciding whether the driver wants to turn or not.
“Following and lane changes seem smoother and more natural,” said Sandy. “However, it still has issues that require intervention/disconnects. When it creeps at stop signs, it can make jerky movements with steering wheel and, imo, it creeps to slowly and takes too long before proceeding.”
Mixed Reviews for 10.69.3.1
As with all of Tesla’s FSD Beta updates, there have been a few good reviews and bad ones. Beta testers tend to focus on the issues, as it is their responsibility to report them so Tesla can improve FSD. However, testers also report significant improvements they see during their drives.
In the case of 10.69.3.1, it seems like FSD Beta received mixed reviews. Some testers believed that the update significantly improved the advanced driver assist software while others thought it was a step back.
“I have tested the 10.69.3.1 build on my Model Y, and it’s a giant leap forward from builds prior to 10.69,” observed Tony, a Model Y owner and a member of the FSD Beta program.
Tony noted that the biggest changes were improvements to acceleration, smoother turns, and less necessary steering wheel input. Sandy also observed more improvements with Tesla FSD Beta 10.69.3.1 rather than issues.
On the other hand, Les believed that v.10.69.3.1 was a step back for FSD Beta.
“These 10.69.3.1 step backs are the biggest in my FSD Beta testing experience to date. Previous builds have been much better for me. But again, I understand the process; updates are sometimes “2 steps forward and 1 step back.” I still enjoy testing. The product isn’t finished yet,” he said.
Tesla FSD Beta Wide Release
Tesla started the wide release of FSD Beta v.10.69.3.1 in late November. A day after its release, Tesla rolled out FSD Beta to cars with less than 100 Autopilot miles and Safety Scores lower than 80.
The EV maker rolled out FSD Beta V11 to a few testers already. FSD Beta V11 is Tesla’s single-stack update. However, update 10.69.3.1 seems to be rolling out to more testers.
Tesla also made Full Self-Driving Beta available to anyone in North America who purchases it from their car screen. Now that Tesla has released FSD Beta to anyone in North America interested in trying it out, the company might want to streamline its performance. Based on Teslarati‘s interviews with FSD Beta Testers, the software performs differently based on location, driver, terrain, and other factors.
“Phantom braking on city streets (not highways) returned for me in one bizarre instance; it wasn’t the sudden hard kind of braking, rather this was a new braking behavior that was slow and gradual almost to a stop while I was going straight in the middle lane of a three-lane road. Not at a turn, wasn’t going through an intersection, and the road was clear,” described Les in one instance.
“There were no cars around me so I let the car do its thing to see what it was doing; it literally started slowing from 40mph to 5mph before I disengaged and accelerated back up to speed. Very weird. I went back to that spot a couple days later and the car didn’t do it. It acted normal,” he explained.
Tesla Full Self-Driving has not received regulatory approval yet. It still faces a lot of skepticism, especially in terms of safety. Delivering consistent, reliable performances in various driving situations might help it get regulatory approval.
Are you an FSD Beta tester? Have you tried out V11? If you have, I’d like to hear from you! Contact me at maria@teslarati.com or via Twitter @Writer_01001101.
Energy
Tesla Model 3 and Model Y can now do what only Cybertruck could
Tesla Model 3 and Model Y can power your home with Powerwall 3 during outages.
Tesla has turned its two top sellers into backup batteries for the house.
Tesla Energy announced on Tuesday that Powershare Home Backup is now available for new Model 3 and Model Y vehicles paired with a Powerwall 3, saying the car can “extend your home backup by over 2 days.” Minutes later, Tesla’s main account quoted the post with a broader pitch: “With Powerwall 3, every Tesla can now serve as your home’s backup battery.”
Until this week, the Cybertruck was the only Tesla that could send power back into a home, and that capability only began working alongside Powerwall 3 last month, after years of ambitious targets.
Tesla’s updated Powershare page says every Model 3 and Model Y ordered in the U.S. or Puerto Rico on or after October 1, 2026 can use the feature. Some, but not all, earlier cars also qualify. Owners can check on the touchscreen under Software, then Additional Vehicle Information, where a capable car shows “Powershare Support: Enabled.” As Electrek reported, bidirectional power on the two cars runs through an inverter Tesla calls PCS2 Lite, and the company has not said when that part entered production on each trim.
The home side is simpler. A house that already has a Powerwall 3 and either a Wall Connector 3 or Universal Wall Connector needs no additional equipment, and Tesla says compatibility is enabled through a software update. When the grid drops, the Powerwall and the car work together, with up to 11.52 kW of continuous power available. Tesla’s “over two days” estimate assumes a home using 30 kWh per day and a car starting at a 90 percent charge. Standard trims are rated for up to two days, while the Cybertruck adds more than three.
There are limits. Powerwall 2 and Powerwall+ support is listed as “coming soon.” Model S and Model X are not included, and Grid Support, the program that lets Cybertruck owners in Texas send power back to the grid during demand spikes for bill credits, is not available for Model 3 or Model Y.
The rollout also lines up with something Elon Musk said more than three years ago. At Tesla’s March 2023 Investor Day, Musk said, “I don’t think very many people are going to want to use bidirectional charging, unless you have a Powerwall.” Tesla has now shipped the feature for its volume cars with exactly that requirement attached.
The Powerwall pairing was the hard part on Cybertruck. Tesla told owners in December 2025 that Powershare with Powerwall had been pushed to mid 2026, and lead engineer Wes Morrill explained that two devices capable of forming a home’s grid have to negotiate which one leads during an outage, across multiple generations of hardware. With that work done for the truck, Tesla was able to extend it to the Model 3 and Model Y within a month.
Ford and GM have offered home backup from their EVs for several years, but both require a separate inverter and backup hardware. Tesla’s version leans on equipment many Powerwall 3 owners already have on the wall. Powershare for the two cars also ships as part of software update 2026.38.3, the same release that began delivering Halloween Mode on Tuesday.
Tesla is now starting to ship a “Halloween Mode” that is filled with some creepy and fun features; the company says, “This spooky update turns your Tesla into a haunted house on wheels.”
The update is just the latest in a series of updates that Tesla typically ships out in a seasonal fashion. The Spring and Summer Updates provided some fun novelty items while also packing some cool features that are actually useful for the ownership experience.
This one seems to be more fun-forward, and there are not any updates to the Full Self-Driving suite or overall operation of the vehicle. Instead, these novelty features are geared toward getting you in the mood for the Fall and Halloween.
Halloween Mode now rolling out 🎃
This spooky update turns your Tesla into a haunted house on wheels
– Ghost costume on your car’s avatar
– Enable Trick or Treat to play spooky sounds & flicker the lights when visitors approach
– New haunting light show, wraps & lock sound
– A rather chilling Photobooth
– Frighten people remotely by speaking through the app…your car will say it in a voice of its own
Side effects may include neighborhood notoriety
— Tesla (@Tesla) October 6, 2026
New Ghost Costume on Car Avatar
Driver Visualization will now show your vehicle as a ghost, as an all-white sheet is draped over the vehicle. Pedestrians are turned into mummies or skeletons, and other vehicles are all a spooky green:
Credit: Tesla
Additionally, the Park Scene with your Tesla now displays that ghost costume draped over your vehicle in the foreground of a scary backdrop with Jack-o-Lanterns and a haunted house:
Credit: Tesla
Trick or Treat Mode
Trick or Treat Mode will enable the vehicle to play spooky sounds and flicker the lights as visitors approach. This might be a nice touch for when you’re handing out candy to kids on Halloween Night.
Other Features
Tesla is also adding a new Light Show, new Wrap Options, and a new Lock Sound with this update.
Credit: Tesla
Additionally, Photobooth has a new Halloween option:
Credit: Tesla
You will also be able to speak remotely through the app and transmit your voice to people outside, which is not a new feature, but the car will say it in a voice of its own, which is a new feature with that bullhorn-like feature.
Investor's Corner
SpaceX reveals how its 1 Million AI satellite network will work and prevent space collisions
SpaceX reveals plans for one million Starmind AI satellites and calls out operators hiding maneuvers.
SpaceX has put the largest satellite count it has ever published into writing, and it says that plan only works if every other operator in orbit starts sharing what it knows.
In a new Space Safety page highlighted Tuesday morning by Sawyer Merritt on X, SpaceX said it “plans to operate up to 100,000 Starlink satellites and up to 1 million Starmind AI satellites to meet the growing demand for broadband and supercompute.” Starlink has a little over 11,000 satellites in orbit today, so the target alone implies roughly a ninefold expansion of the broadband network.
Starmind is SpaceX’s orbital AI compute constellation. Elon Musk confirmed the Starmind name in June after an xAI trademark filing surfaced, and in August SpaceX said it was working with Nvidia on the compute payload. The FCC accepted the filing for up to one million satellites back in February.
FCC accepts SpaceX filing for 1 million orbital data center plan
SpaceX also released a new render of what a full Starmind constellation could look like. Alongside it, SpaceX VP Michael Nicolls explained why the satellites will not operate on their own. “We need to operate clusters of satellites in tight formation to get enough coherent compute to run AI models efficiently,” Nicolls said. “A cluster will be 10-ish satellites connected with 10 terabits or so of bandwidth between them, and interconnected to the broader constellation.”
That is the most specific detail SpaceX has given on how Starmind will be built. Instead of a million independent servers, the network would work as tightly packed groups of about 10 satellites acting as one compute unit, with Starlink’s laser links carrying results back to Earth.
There is a bright and exciting future for humanity ahead – and space is fundamental to that future.
To achieve this, space safety must be done right. We encourage every operator to not only share ephemeris data proactively the same way Starlink already does, but to also adopt the high standards of space safety that SpaceX and Starlink use every day → https://t.co/QizAkQZvEm
— Starlink (@Starlink) October 6, 2026
Packing satellites that close together, at that scale, makes collision avoidance the central problem, and most of the Space Safety page is aimed at other operators. SpaceX said Starlink encountered collision risks with about 650 unique maneuvering third party satellites in 2026, and only about half of them shared data. Over six months, Starlink recorded roughly 164,000 more collision risks where the closest approach came within four hours of an unannounced maneuver.
Some operators keep maneuver plans private over proprietary concerns, while others cannot get government permission to share them. SpaceX called those policies “counterproductive,” saying they “largely only serve to create preventable collision risk between satellites.” Starlink is also offering a free ephemeris sharing and screening platform that returns risk results within a minute, backed by its Stargaze network of 30,000 optical sensors.
The push comes as the Starmind application draws opposition from astronomers and environmental groups. In a September filing with the FCC, SpaceX said each Starmind satellite could weigh up to 4,000 kg, nearly seven times the mass of a Starlink V2 Mini. Musk has brushed off crowding concerns before, telling viewers in June that “space is enormous” and that SpaceX already knows how to run very large constellations safely.
SpaceX’s Starmind page says its Gigasat factory in Bastrop, Texas, is designed to produce AI satellites at scale, with deployment of thousands of units starting as soon as late 2027.
Tesla Model 3 and Model Y can now do what only Cybertruck could
Tesla ships ‘spooky’ Halloween Mode with creepy and fun features
