Tesla FSD V12.5 Now Supports Additional Models; Hardware 3 Vehicles Still Waiting

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Tesla pushed FSD V12.5 with update 2024.20.10 to additional vehicles last night. For the first time, FSD v12.5 also went out to additional Tesla models, however, it’s still limited to hardware 4 vehicles.

Support for FSD V12.5

FSD V12.5 is only available to vehicles with hardware 4 vehicles, or as Tesla is now calling the hardware, AI4. Before yesterday the update was limited to just Model Y vehicles on HW4, but Tesla quickly expanded it to all vehicles besides the Cybertruck and Semi, which has yet to see any Autopilot features.

Musk commented on X that he wanted to focus on improving the software on specific hardware before expanding it to additional hardware and vehicles.

FSD v12.5 has a 5X increase in operating parameters. This is a large increase and Musk said that it currently won’t be able to run on hardware 3 until the code is optimized.

We are focusing on just Model Y with HW4 for the initial release. Make sure that works well, then broaden.

This has the 5X increase in parameters.

HW3 would run the same parameter count, but requires extra work to optimize the code.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 23, 2024

Ashok Elluswamy, Head of AP at Tesla, also mentioned that the focus for V12.5 was on both safety and smoothness for this release. His personal test – not spilling an open cup of coffee while on FSD. On V12.5, Ashok made it 30 minutes without spilling coffee. This is good news, as the smoother and safer FSD gets, the more natural it feels for the driver and occupants in other vehicles.

HW4/AI4

Following all this up is a recent post on X from Elon mentioning that Hardware 4 will now be renamed to AI 4. Tesla is already training the HW4 computers in a loop with Nvidia GPUs, at a 1:2 ratio. This is surprising news, as Musk previously mentioned that training for Hardware 4/AI4 would only begin after the new Supercomputer cluster was finished.

It's good to see that training is already underway for AI4, but this also means we’re hitting the limits of Hardware 3 pretty fast. It has been mentioned that there will be a drastic hardware divergence in the future between Hardware 3 and AI4, but we weren’t expecting that until later this year.

This means that updates may get better, as Tesla’s AI4 is approximately 4-5x better in terms of resolution and fidelity than hardware 3, and hardware 4.0 is about 3-5x faster and more powerful in inference capabilities. 

AI5

With AI5 scheduled 18 months away, including a 10x inferencing improvement, we’re wondering what the future of Hardware 3 and AI4 will look like within the next 3 to 5 years. Cars are long-time purchases for many people, and we’re hoping that Tesla continues to do their best work to optimize code wherever possible to continue supporting Hardware 3.

Tesla has specifically come out and said it doesn’t plan to support a retrofit from Hardware 3 to Hardware 4, likely due to the differing locations of electrical and coolant connections, as well as the form factor of the compute units themselves.

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Tesla FSD in Europe: June Update

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The road to bringing FSD to Europe has been a long and complex one and filled with regulatory and bureaucratic hurdles. Elon Musk, as well as other members of Tesla’s AI team, have previously voiced their grievances with the regulatory approval process on X.

However, it appears that there is finally some progress in getting things moving with recent changes to upcoming autonomy regulations, but the process still seems slow.

Waiting on the Dutch

Elon commented on X recently, stating that Tesla is waiting for approval from Dutch authorities and then the EU to start rolling out FSD in Europe. Tesla is focusing on acquiring approvals from the Dutch transportation authority, which will provide them with the platform they need to gain broader acceptance in Europe. Outside of the Netherlands, Tesla is also conducting testing in Norway, which provides a couple of avenues for them to obtain national-level approval.

The frustration has been ongoing, with multiple committee meetings bringing up autonomy regulation but always pulling back at the last second before approving anything. The last meeting on Regulation 157, which governs Automated Lane Keeping Systems, concluded with authorities from the UK and Spain requesting additional time to analyze the data before reaching a conclusion.

Tesla, as well as Elon, have motioned several times for owners to reach out to their elected representatives to move the process forward, as it seems that Tesla’s own efforts are being stymied. 

This can seem odd, especially since Tesla has previously demoed FSD working exceptionally smoothly on European roads - and just did it again in Rome when they shared the video below on X.

FSD Supervised testing in Rome, Italy

Pending regulatory approval pic.twitter.com/TXh3uQIfrx

— Tesla Europe & Middle East (@teslaeurope) June 12, 2025

DCAS Phase 3

While the approval process has been slow, Kees Roelandschap pointed out that there may be a different regulatory step that could allow FSD to gain a foothold in Europe.

According to Kees, the European Commission is now taking a new approach to approving ADAS systems under the new DCAS Phase 3 regulations. The Commission is now seeking data from systems currently operational in the United States that can perform System-Initiated Maneuvers and don’t require hands-on intervention for every request.

This is key because those are two of the core functionalities that make FSD so usable, and it also means that there may not be a need to wait years for proper regulations to be written from scratch. Now, the Commission will be looking at real-world data based on existing, deployed technology, which could speed up the process immensely.

What This Means

This new, data-driven regulatory approach could be the path for Tesla to reach its previous target of September for European FSD. While the cogs of bureaucracy are ever slow, sometimes all it takes is a little data to have them turn a bit faster in this case.

Alongside specific countries granting approval for limited field testing with employees, there is some light at the end of the tunnel for FSD in Europe, and hopes are that a release will occur by the end of 2025. With Europe now looking to North America for how FSD is performing, Tesla’s Robotaxi results could also play a role.

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Tesla Launches 'TeslaVision' Contest With Big Prizes — See Last Year’s Winner [VIDEO]

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Tesla’s marketing has always been relatively unconventional, relying on word-of-mouth rather than traditional advertising. The passion of the owner’s community is always massive, but it is especially high now with the launch of the Robotaxi network just around the corner.

Tesla is now tapping into that spring of fan creativity and announced the TeslaVision video contest, with some seriously impressive prizes up for grabs.

Announcing the TeslaVision fan video showcase

Tesla owners & supporters have always been able to see our products & mission for what they truly are.

Your word of mouth has made Tesla what it is today.

The OGs will remember that in 2017, we held our first video contest. 8 years… pic.twitter.com/6pPpkqmqOH

— Tesla (@Tesla) June 10, 2025

The Contest

The core of the contest is simple. Create a video that shows how your Tesla gives you more in life. Tesla is looking for submissions that highlight themes of freedom, safety, fun, and convenience.

Prizes

The prizes definitely make this contest worth entering if you’re good with a camera and have some basic video editing abilities.

For North America, the prizes include a brand new Model Y AWD Long Range, alongside an all-expenses-paid trip to Austin for a tour of Giga Texas. The grand prize winner will also be able to custom order their Model Y, allowing them to select their preferred wheels and color.

The two runners-up won’t get a Model Y, but they’ll also enjoy an all-expenses-paid trip to Giga Texas for a tour of the factory.

The travel and tour include lodging in Austin for 2 nights, as well as economy-class round-trip tickets from anywhere in North America. Tesla will also provide a vehicle for use during the trip.

Hopefully, these winners will also have the opportunity to experience the Robotaxi network while they’re in Austin, as it’s expected to be opened to the public later this month.

Project Loveday

For long-time followers of Tesla, this contest may feel familiar. The contest is a direct throwback to the 2017 Project Loveday contest, which was inspired by a letter to Tesla from a 10-year-old aspiring marketer. That contest was won by MKBHD, with his submission below:

How to Enter

If you’re ready to start filming, here are the key pieces of information you’ll need to know:

• Video must be 90 seconds or less

• Video must be uploaded to YouTube with a public URL

• Make a post on X and Instagram tagging “@Tesla” and include the words “TeslaVision contest” in the post.

• Provide links to both social media posts in your submission to Tesla’s form

• Provide your personal details in the form

• You have until July 17th, 2025, or until Tesla receives 10,000 entries, whichever comes first.

You can find the official submission form and all region-specific details on Tesla's website.

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