Tesla CEO Elon Musk on April 19 said that the electric vehicle (EV) giant is likely to launch full self-drive technology this year to generate significant profits that offset some of the margin pressure the company is facing due to aggressive price cuts. “I hesitate to say this but I think we'll do it this year,” said Musk, while speaking on a conference call.

“The test version of Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) software will be two steps forward, one step back between releases, but the trend is very clearly towards full self-driving, towards full autonomy,” he added.

The current Full Self-Driving Full Self-Driving technology has drawn legal and regulatory scrutiny following crashes. Tesla has said the technology does not make the car autonomous and requires driver supervision.

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Tesla's Financial Chief, Zachary Kirkhorn said, “The automotive margin in the first quarter was hurt not only by price cuts but also increased deferred revenue for FSD software. This deferral should get recognized once some of the software catches up.”

Tesla sells FSD software as an option for as much as $15,000. In late 2022, the automotive and clean energy company removed ultrasonic sensors from Model 3 and Model Y cars and said some features such as ‘smart summon’ and ‘autopark’ would be temporarily unavailable.

“We do have this unique strategic advantage. We are making a car that, if autonomy pans out, that asset will be worth a hell of a lot more in the future than it is now,” said Tesla, CEO Elon Musk.

Tesla, on Wednesday, reported its quarter-one earnings with a lower-than-expected quarterly margin but Musk said he would prioritize sales growth over profits in a weak economy.

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(Edited by : Vivek Dubey)