Tesla releases FSD Beta 10.3.1 to address issues in 10.3

On Sunday Tesla released the latest FSD Beta, version 10.3 to many new anticipated testers. In addition to going out to current testers, Tesla also released the beta to owners who had achieved a Safety Score of 99 or higher.

@DirtyTesla/Twitter

Beta 10.3 included many improvements to self driving as outlined in Tesla’s technical release notes. It also included a new feature called FSD Profiles, which introduced driving styles for FSD.

Unfortunately, the excitement was short lived, as the beta included several issues, one of which disabled the use of Autopilot on city streets. The release appears to have some issues related to Automatic Emergency Braking and Forward Collision Warnings, as Tesla has remotely disabled these features. Issues are par for the course for any beta release and this should be a warning to future testers waiting to be selected. Not all releases and features will always work or go smoothly.

Thanks to social media, Tesla was made aware of the issue that affected some models fairly quickly and Tesla started to roll users back to a public release.

Seeing some issues with 10.3, so rolling back to 10.2 temporarily.

Please note, this is to be expected with beta software. It is impossible to test all hardware configs in all conditions with internal QA, hence public beta.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 24, 2021

The FSD Beta was release 2021.36.5.2. When Tesla decided to roll users back to a more stable build, they pushed out update 2021.36.5.1, which did not include the FSD Beta. This left some users confused on whether they should install the update or if it was a mistake.

It doesn’t look like Tesla sent out an email explaining the situation, which left many users questioning what happened when they received an update for an older, non-FSD build.

It’s not clear why Tesla didn’t roll users back to the previous FSD Beta, v10.2.

10.3.1 rolling out now

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 25, 2021

However, if there’s one thing we know, it’s that Tesla moves quickly. Early this morning Tesla has already pushed out another FSD Beta build that tries to address the issues found in beta 10.3.

The update comes in as FSD Beta 10.3.1, which is version 2021.36.5.3.

Tesla is sending the update to select vehicles and monitoring feedback before sending it out to all beta testers.

If you received FSD Beta 10.3 and downgraded to the non-FSD update, you should receive this newest FSD Beta as well. Tesla will likely continue to slowly roll it out to more cars and monitor the release before releasing it to everyone.

If you’re still on FSD Beta 10.3, it’s recommended that you download and install the non-beta version for now until Tesla is able to iron out the issues.

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Tesla Increases Price of Model S; Starts Offering Free Lifetime Supercharging

Not a Tesla App

For the first time in quite a while, Tesla has increased the price of one of its vehicle offerings. The Model S Long Range and the Model S Plaid have both received a hefty price increase. However, not all is bad - as Tesla also added a new benefit for buyers.

Price Increase

The price increase for the Model S is $5,000 - currently only in the United States. This price increase will likely impact other markets, including Canada, in the coming days.

The Model S Long Range now starts at $79,990, while the Model S Plaid now starts at $94,990. The Model S and Model X now have the same starting price. Interestingly, that’s also the same pricing point for the Cybertruck AWD and Cyberbeast Trimotor non-Foundation Series. 

The vehicle configuration does not appear to have changed, so the new pricing is simply an increase rather than the addition or removal of features. Tesla previously cut the price of the Model S and Model X by 15% in 2023, so this could simply be an adjustment to ensure that the vehicle pricing stays in line with inflation and other factors.

Free Lifetime Supercharging

For those on the fence about ordering a Model S, Tesla has brought back Free Lifetime Supercharging when you order a new Model S on or after December 13, 2024. As always, Free Lifetime Supercharging is restricted to the buyer’s Tesla account and to that specific vehicle. It cannot be transferred to another vehicle or another owner after ownership transfer. It’s worth noting, that it also doesn’t exclude the owner from receiving Supercharger idle fees or congestion fees. There is currently no end date for this promotion.

There are currently no changes to the Model X, neither a price increase nor the addition of Lifetime Superchargering. However, when Tesla makes changes to one of their premium vehicles, it usually affects the other one as well. So be on the lookout for potential changes to the Model X offering in the coming days.

We’ve seen Tesla value Lifetime Supercharging at $5,000, so this falls in line with the price increase we’re seeing. It’s possible that Tesla will begin to bring back Lifetime Supercharging as a perk for buying into their more premium Model S and Model X cars, or this could be another temporary promotion to get buyers who are on the fence to go ahead and make their purchase while this promotion lasts.

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Tesla’s Optimus Robot Learns to Walk Without Vision [VIDEO]

Optimus Falls - but catches itself!

Not a Tesla App

Tesla recently showed off a demo of Optimus, its humanoid robot, walking around in moderately challenging terrain—not on a flat surface but on dirt and slopes. These things can be difficult for a humanoid robot, especially during the training cycle.

Daily walks help clear your mind pic.twitter.com/dUsW58trS6

— Tesla Optimus (@Tesla_Optimus) December 9, 2024

A Look Behind the Curtain

Most interestingly, Milan Kovac, VP of Engineering for Optimus, clarified what it takes to get Optimus to this stage. Let’s break down what he said.

Optimus is Blind

Optimus is getting seriously good at walking now - it can keep its balance over uneven ground - even while walking blind. Tesla is currently using just the sensors, all powered by a neural net running on the embedded computer. 

Essentially, Tesla is building Optimus from the ground up, relying on as much additional data as possible while it trains vision. This is similar to how they train FSD on vehicles, using LiDAR rigs to validate the vision system’s accuracy. While Optimus doesn’t have LiDAR, it relies on all those other sensors on board, many of which will likely become simplified as vision takes over as the primary sensor.

Today, Optimus is walking blind, but it’s able to react almost instantly to changes in the terrain underneath it, even if it falls or slips. 

What’s Next?

Next up, Tesla AI will be adding vision to Optimus - helping complete the neural net. Remember, Optimus runs on the same overall AI stack as FSD - in fact, Optimus uses an FSD computer and an offshoot of the FSD stack for vision-based tasks.

Milan mentions they’re planning on adding vision to help the robot plan ahead and improve its walking gait. While the zombie shuffle is iconic and a little bit amusing, getting humanoid robots to walk like humans is actually difficult.

There’s plenty more, too - including better responsiveness to velocity and direction commands and learning to fall and stand back up. Falling while protecting yourself to minimize damage is something natural to humans - but not exactly natural to something like a robot. Training it to do so is essential in keeping the robot, the environment around it, and the people it is interacting with safe.

We’re excited to see what’s coming with Optimus next because it is already getting started in some fashion in Tesla’s factories.

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