According to Tesla Service, the game was only under a “temporary suspension.” The service representative goes on to state: “Indeed, this game is currently suspended, it will be re-integrated soon.”
Early last year, Tesla added Sonic to vehicles that did not have data-capable USB ports in the front via the glovebox. Version 2022.28.1 release notes read, “A game controller plugged into the glovebox USB port is required.”
Sonic the Hedgehog is a platform video game that was released in 1991 by Sega for their Genesis gaming system. Players control a blue hedgehog, named Sonic, to run at fast speeds on a mission to overtake Dr. Robotnik, a mad scientist who has locked away animals inside robot bodies while chasing after the Chaos Emeralds.
The removal of Sonic the Hedgehog is still unclear, but we’re speculating that it had to do with a bug or the license expiring.
Tesla also added Steam to a few of its vehicles, which signals that they may be transitioning away from adding more games. Instead, they’ll rely on Steam’s vast catalog of games for users to enjoy. Tesla may simply transition into making sure Steam is running smoothly on its operating system.
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Tesla’s latest 2024.14.3 update will bring an updated UI and new capabilities to its Auto Shift feature.
Auto Shift, which is available on the 2021+ Model S, Model X, the 2024 Model 3 and the Cybertruck, allows the vehicle to automatically shift into Drive or Reverse when you get into the vehicle. Instead of having to tap on a stalk, you just sit in the vehicle, press the brake pedal, and then the accelerator to start moving in the right direction.
Smart Shift, as it was previously called, needs to be enabled in Controls > Pedals and Steering > Auto Shift Out of Park.
Improved User Interface
With update 2024.14, Tesla is adjusting the Auto Shift user interface to be more compact on the new Model 3.
On the new Model 3, there is now space at the top of the screen to fit in the gear indicator, instead of it having to be pushed off to the right. Auto Shift also no longer goes all the way to the bottom of the screen. It allows the media player to go edge to edge on the left side of the screen, giving Tesla room to add more options to the media player such as shuffle and repeat.
It’s a departure from the previous version where Auto Shift took up the entire left side of the screen, from top to bottom.
Additional Capabilities in Update 2024.14
With update 2024.14, Tesla will also expand the capabilities of Auto shift in the Model S and X to not only shift into the correct gear when coming out of park but also during other maneuvers. For example, during K turns, the vehicle will be capable of automatically shifting from Drive to Reverse and Reverse to Drive.
For now, the feature will be limited to the Model S and Model X, but we've already seen this feature available on development software for the new Model 3 Performance, so we know it'll eventually be available on the new Model 3 and presumably the Cybertruck as well.
Back in 2021, Musk tweeted that Tesla's new Smart Shift feature would eventually become available as an optional feature in all Teslas with FSD. That hasn't happened yet, but it'd be interesting to understand whether this is still Tesla's plan. All Tesla vehicles are technically capable of using Auto Shift since it's completely vision-based.
Newer vehicles do include backup buttons in case the screen fails for some reason in these vehicles, but other vehicles could continue to use the stalks as a backup if it was needed.
Tesla update 2024.14.3 has been tested by Tesla employees and has just started rolling out to customers today. Be sure to check out our release notes to see all the great additions in this spring update.
Less than ten days since the last FSD update, Tesla has started rolling out FSD v12.3.6. Not only does this update include improvements to FSD itself, but it also adds the new Autopark and High Fidelity Park Assist to vehicles with ultrasonic sensors.
As Tesla continues to ramp up its AI training capacity, the average number of miles driven on FSD continues to climb at an increased rate.
Computing Power
Last week, in the earnings call deck, Tesla revealed that it’s set to increase its core AI infrastructure capacity “in the coming months.” Tesla stated it has quadrupled its capacity since September 2023.
To further improve our end-to-end training capability, we will continue to increase our core AI infrastructure capacity in the coming months. - Tesla
Musk said on Sunday that the company will spend “around $10B” throughout 2024 in “combined training and inference AI, the latter being primarily in car”. “Any company not spending at this level, and doing so efficiently, cannot compete,” he added.
Tesla's computing power has drastically increased
Expansion to China
In an unexpected 24-hour trip to China, Elon Musk visited Beijing to meet with Premier Li Qiang to discuss the rollout of Full Self-Driving (FSD) software and permission to transfer driving data overseas. Since Tesla uses fleet data to continuously improve FSD, being able to use data gathered in and outside of China will be crucial to its continued improvement.
Elon Musk meeting with Premier Li Qiang today in China.
On the same day, Tesla models produced at Giga Shanghai were listed among the EVs that meet China's data security requirements for smart cars, an important hurdle for Tesla to surpass.
When Musk was asked on X about Tesla releasing FSD in China, Musk simply said “It may be possible very soon.”
Regarding additional markets such as Europe and Australia, Musk said he believes that v12 is “ready for supervised FSD in LHD countries” while RHD like the UK or Australia “will take a bit longer”.
Internal FSD Is 3 to 6 Months Ahead
Earlier this month, Tesla disclosed that the team knows “roughly” how the software will perform in “3 to 6 months”. He added that it takes “a few months to fix those bugs and complete safety tests” before releasing the version to the Tesla employees and then to the general public.
Major FSD Updates Coming
On X, Musk teased that the next major update to FSD will be v12.4, saying “it’s awesome,” and that it’s “another big jump in capabilities.” Musk said that Tesla’s computing constraint has been much improved, and likely may be a factor in this further being another big improvement.
In mid-March, Elon Musk announced that Tesla will reintroduce Smart Summon and Autopark to its vehicles. Tesla has now delivered on the Autopark promise, but we’re still waiting on the improved Smart Summon feature. It’s possible we’ll see in FSD v12.4.
TeslaFi logs your drives and charging sessions, letting you keep a log of your vehice's activity. We highly recommend checking them out if you use your car for business trips and would like to keep track of reimbursements, if you like to see how much you spend on charging or if you just love statistics. Visit their site and see everything they have to offer!
Tesla Android Project enables you to run Android apps in your Tesla. The platform is Open Source and you can deploy it on your own Raspberry Pi 4. Consider supporting the initiative by donating or purchasing the Compute Module 4 Bundle that delivers the best experience. Get $20 off by using the code: NotATeslaApp
The official Tesla app only notifies you if your car is broken into. By installing Sentry Pro on your phone, you will be notified for all Sentry Mode events. Stay connected and avoid potential surprises by receiving notifications. Stop constantly checking the cameras to ensure safety. Check only when necessary, save battery and get peace of mind. Get a 7 day free trial here!
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