Elon Musk welcomed Germany’s push for faster European approval of Tesla Inc.’s (NASDAQ:TSLA) Full Self-Driving Supervised system after German Transport Minister Steffen Bilger called for the technology to be approved across the European Union.
Germany Pushes Faster Europe-Wide FSD Approval
“Danke Schön!” Musk wrote on X after Bilger’s comments.
Germany’s Transport Ministry said Monday that Bilger wants the system approved “in a timely manner” across Europe after discussions with Tesla in September over technical and liability issues. “My goal is for Tesla drivers to be able to use the benefits of Assisted Driving throughout the EU as quickly as possible,” Bilger said.
Bilger said Germany wants to enable innovation while maintaining safety standards. The ministry said Tesla’s system has shown strong performance, particularly in city driving, while stressing that drivers remain “100 percent responsible” for controlling their vehicles. Tesla has also offered to rename FSD Supervised as “Tesla Assisted Driving” in Europe.
Tesla Expands FSD Across European Markets
The endorsement marks another step forward for Tesla’s European FSD expansion. Dutch regulator RDW approved FSD Supervised in April after more than 18 months of testing, making the Netherlands the first European country to authorize the system.
RDW later said its evaluation included more than 3,000 hours of testing, over 1,000 test runs and data covering 1.8 million kilometers driven in Europe. The regulator emphasized that FSD Supervised does not make a Tesla autonomous and requires continuous driver supervision.
Tesla has since secured approval in several additional European markets. Reuters reported last week that the system is now authorized in eight European countries, though an expected EU-wide vote was delayed from October, with December emerging as the next likely decision window.
Safety Concerns Still Cloud Wider Approval
The regulatory debate remains contentious. European safety groups have raised concerns about FSD’s speed-limit behavior, while Reuters separately reported on Tuesday that some regulators remain skeptical about Tesla’s safety claims. The European Transport Safety Council has urged EU governments to reject parts of the system over its speed-offset feature, which can allow speeds above detected limits.
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