Tesla is allowing early access to its “Full Self-Driving” feature to a select group of owners
The NDA prohibits owners from talking or offering rides to the media
Testers are also encouraged to battle critics of Tesla on their social medias
Tesla is now allowing select owners to take part in an early access test of its “Full Self-Driving”, but they have to sign an NDA before they are able to do so.
This information comes from owners who opted-in to the beta test by pressing a button that appeared on their car’s screen after the latest over the air software update, since Tesla doesn’t engage with the traditional media.
Not every Tesla will be equipped with the system however, since it is a $10,000 (USD) option, although owners can subscribe to it after the car was built for a price ranging from $99 to $199 per month, in the US.
This NDA reportedly prohibits owners form talking about their experience with the system to the media, as well as offering them rides in their cars to let them experience it for themselves.
In addition, a passage encourages testers to be mindful about what they share on social media, suggesting they make less posts than usual.
Furthermore, Tesla directly asks testers to fight critics about the company or FSD on social media by saying “Do remember that there are a lot of people that want Tesla to fail; Don’t let them mischaracterize your feedback and media posts.”
The usual critics regarding “Full Self-Driving” are about the name of the system itself, which is misleading since this system is a level 2 autonomous driving technology, thus it requires constant attention from the drivers, who can’t even remove their hands from the steering wheel.
Calling it “Full Self-Driving” implies a level of abilities that isn’t present and many owners are overconfident in the system’s capacities, which has led to some accidents in the past where drivers were sleeping or watching movies instead of concentrating on the road.
Source: RoadShow