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Tesla is back in the headlines with a series of notable developments ranging from key software updates to production breakthroughs and executive shakeups. The latest update to Tesla’s Safety Score—a key metric for its insurance offering—is dropping controversial features while refining driver behavior analysis. Meanwhile, the company is celebrating major milestones in battery production and expanding Full Self-Driving (FSD) testing into new markets. Let’s break down everything you need to know.
Tesla Rolls Out Safety Score Update (v2.2)
Tesla has released version 2.2 of its Safety Score Beta, making significant changes to how it evaluates driver safety for insurance purposes. Here’s what’s new:
- Forward Collision Warnings Removed: One of the most criticized metrics, FCW, is no longer included in the score.
- Excessive Speeding Revised: More nuanced detection has been introduced, tracking speeds over 85 mph or relative speeding 20% higher than the vehicle in front.
- Hard Braking, Unsafe Following, and Aggressive Turning Now Weigh More: These behaviors now have more impact on your score.
- Data-Driven: Tesla’s model uses data from over 22 billion miles driven by its global fleet.
This update makes the scoring more refined, rewarding smoother and safer driving while addressing prior criticisms from the Tesla community.
Tesla’s Safety Score Factors (v2.2) Include:
- Hard Braking: Capped at 5.2%, measured when not on Autopilot.
– Aggressive Turning: Capped at 13.2%.
- Unsafe Following: Calculated from time spent tailgating at 50+ mph.
– Excessive Speeding: New definition with 10% cap.
- Late-Night Driving: Weighed differently for each hour (11 PM–4 AM), capped at 14.2%.
- Forced Autopilot Disengagement: Simple 1 or 0 score per trip.
– Unbuckled Driving: Penalized up to 31.7%.
Note: California drivers are exempt from Safety Scores due to data privacy laws.
Tesla Hits Major 4680 Battery Milestone
Tesla’s Giga Texas team announced a major achievement: its in-house 4680 battery cells are now the lowest-cost per kWh in the industry. This surpasses even top suppliers like Panasonic and LG. Elon Musk highlighted this during a recent company-wide meeting, emphasizing Tesla’s growing vertical integration and innovation in battery tech.
Notable points:
- Tesla surpassed 100 million 4680 cells produced in 2024.
- Full ramp-up of dry electrode manufacturing is expected in 2025.
- Milestone reinforces Tesla’s edge in cost efficiency and scalability.
Full Self-Driving (FSD) Supervised Launching in Europe
Tesla is accelerating its push to launch FSD Supervised in Europe. A recent video from Amsterdam showcases engineering test drives, but the system still awaits regulatory approval from the Dutch RDW.
Highlights:
– Launch pending EU regulatory greenlight in May.
– FSD already launched in Mexico and China.
- Regulatory red tape could push full rollout to 2028, warns ex-Tesla exec.
Executive Shakeup: Software VP David Lau Departs
Tesla’s VP of Software Engineering, David Lau, is exiting the company after 12 years. Lau played a crucial role in firmware, vehicle control systems, and Tesla’s UI innovations. His departure follows several high-profile exits and comes during a time of political tension and corporate pushback over Elon Musk’s alignment with controversial policies.
What Undercode Say:
Tesla’s Safety Score update is more than just a software tweak—it’s a strategic recalibration of its insurance model. By dropping Forward Collision Warnings, Tesla addresses the metric’s inconsistency, which had been flagged by both drivers and analysts. Adding more weight to aggressive behaviors like speeding and tailgating signals Tesla’s commitment to real-world safety, not just sensor-based alerts.
This also aligns with a broader trend of Tesla refining its machine learning models using massive data inputs. The use of 22 billion miles of anonymized driving data gives the scoring system unparalleled empirical grounding. It’s data science applied to risk in real-time.
From an analytics standpoint:
- Increased weights on braking and turning behaviors suggest Tesla is nudging users toward smoother, more anticipatory driving.
- Capping certain behaviors like speeding and unbuckled driving keeps the system fair, ensuring outliers don’t unfairly skew scores.
- The use of time-based weighting for night driving is a smart move that reflects actuarial evidence—risk at 2 AM is far greater than at 11 PM.
The 4680 battery milestone is perhaps more critical than the software changes. Cost-per-kWh dominance isn’t just a win—it’s a Tesla moat. It allows for better EV margins, which translates into:
– More aggressive pricing (Model Y Juniper drop is one example),
– Enhanced production scalability,
- Greater resilience in the face of global battery supply constraints.
FSD’s slow rollout in Europe underscores regulatory complexity in autonomous driving. Tesla’s supervised version may comply faster than its fully autonomous dream, but bureaucracy remains the true bottleneck.
David Lau’s departure could indicate a cultural or strategic shift internally. It’s the fourth major exit in just months, hinting at possible turbulence or strategic restructuring under Musk’s increasingly centralized leadership style.
For investors and Tesla fans, these developments form a mixed but mostly positive outlook:
– The insurance model is becoming smarter and fairer.
– Battery innovation keeps margins strong.
– Autonomy is progressing, though slowly.
- Leadership churn needs watching—but isn’t unprecedented for fast-moving tech firms.
Fact Checker Results:
- Tesla has officially rolled out Safety Score v2.2, confirmed by Tesla’s insurance page.
- 4680 battery cells are now cheaper per kWh, verified via Tesla executive LinkedIn posts and Musk’s own announcement.
- FSD Europe launch is in engineering testing, with video footage released by Tesla’s regional X account.
Want more Tesla deep dives and real-time automotive tech analysis? Stay tuned.
References:
Reported By: https://www.teslarati.com/tesla-safety-score-update-new/
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