Tesla Renames ‘Full Self-Driving’ to ‘Tesla Assisted Driving’ in Europe After German Pressure
After Germany’s transport minister called the branding misleading, Tesla renamed FSD (Supervised) to Tesla Assisted Driving in October 2026. Steffen Bilger will support EU-wide approval before a vote later this year, despite Reuters reporting flaws in Tesla’s safety research.
Tesla has renamed its advanced driver assistance system in Europe from “Full Self-Driving (Supervised)” to “Tesla Assisted Driving,” following pushback from Germany’s transportation ministry. The change was announced in October 2026 and could open the door to broader European approval of the software.
Germany’s transport minister, Steffen Bilger, said the original name was misleading because the system does not perform the entire task of driving — it still requires the human driver to remain attentive and take over when necessary. After speaking with Tesla last month, the company proposed the name change. Bilger has since said he will advocate for approval of Tesla Assisted Driving across Europe ahead of a potential EU-wide vote later this year. Tesla CEO Elon Musk thanked Bilger on X following the announcement.
Musk has pushed for years to get the software approved in Europe. The Netherlands became the first European country to approve FSD (Supervised) earlier in 2026. However, Reuters reported this week that Tesla’s European approval campaign has been “built on faulty company safety research” and “flawed studies,” and that the Dutch vehicle safety regulator faced significant pressure from Tesla and its online supporters.
The software has grown considerably more capable over time, evolving from basic lane centering and adaptive cruise control into a system some owners use for nearly all of their daily driving. Tesla recently added a feature allowing the system to intervene in a human driver’s control if it detects an imminent collision, even when the software is not actively engaged.
Despite its advancement, the system has been the subject of federal investigations and civil lawsuits over crashes in which it was allegedly in use. Tesla’s earlier system, Autopilot, has been linked to dozens of fatalities, and Tesla discontinued it earlier this year after a judge ruled the company had engaged in deceptive marketing about its capabilities.
Wider European approval could represent a significant new revenue stream for Tesla, giving the name change potential commercial as well as regulatory implications for the company.