- Tesla’s Spring update brings with it lots of changes
- A new self-driving app is inarguably the biggest
- However, the app will only work on cars with the latest hardware
Tesla has revealed details of a massive Spring 2026 update that will bring a host of new software features to vehicles across the globe.
Alongside smaller things, such as a voice prompt to wake Grok and an innovative use of interior lighting to act as a blind spot warning system, Tesla has ushered in a new, dedicated Self-Driving app that will act as a hub for any information surrounding its highly autonomous Full Self-Driving (Supervised) system.
Appearing somewhat like a homepage of a smart TV, the new app allows owners that didn’t specify FSD at the time of purchase to subscribe to the feature with the press of a button.
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There are also tutorial videos and the ability to adjust numerous FSD settings from within the app.
Eagle-eyed Tesla fans have noted that the UX looks as if it is preparing for the potential introduction to a pay-per-mile or short term Full Self-Driving subscription package.
This could, potentially, allow customers to 'rent' the technology for a road trip, or even a day in the future — although Tesla hasn't yet confirmed this.
Inside the new FSD app, there’s also a screen that crunches the numbers and shows how much time the vehicle has spent in ‘Self-Driving’ mode, as well as track multi-day usage streaks.
Not a Tesla App notes that this shows owners “exactly how much value they are getting from the software”. However, it also looks like a ploy to 'gamify' its autonomous driving functionality in order to keep customers engaged and drum up new business.
Analysis: Not everyone is happy
A number of disgruntled owners have taken to the various comments sections, social media sites and subreddits to air their grievances around Tesla’s decision to make this new app only available to cars with Hardware 4 (HW4) — the latest models, in other words.
Some customers have claimed that, despite their vehicles only being two years old, they are not able to make the most of the new Full Self-Driving app or the future improvements to the technology, while the clever use of interior accent lights is only available on the refreshed “Highland” Model 3 and Model Y, as well as the Cybertruck.
“And now HW3 owners have been delegated to the crap pile, just like all the previous car owners,” one Reddit user commented.
Others soon piled in to criticize the fact that most of Tesla’s “major” updates haven’t added many genuinely useful features. “In the four years of owning my Model S, the only update that I found useful was when they enabled the blind spot cameras in the driver display,” a Reddit user added.
Skeptics could easily claim that this update follows a similar pattern, with minor additions thrown in to grab headlines. These include the ability for customers to choose an animal when the car is in ‘Pet Mode’, including a dog, a cat and a new character dubbed Cyberhog (it’s a hedgehog, of course).
Apparently, many cars will also receive improved graphics on the in-car visualizations, as well as minor improvements to the weather maps and the Sketchpad app.
However, the biggest change, which comes in the form of the new Self-Driving app, is designed to drum up more business for Tesla’s automated technology, much of which won’t apply to anything that isn’t running the latest hardware.
This is a far cry from Elon Musk's initial promise that any Tesla produced since 2016 will be able to run Full Self-Driving — a fact that it back-tracked on last year.
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