Tesla will now alert you when vision-monitoring isn't being used
@WifeDirtyTesla
With FSD V12.4.1 finally beginning its rollout to select customers as of last night. You’re probably wondering exactly how nags will – or won’t – work for the updated and much-hyped update.
No Steering Wheel Nags
Tesla’s current implementation of no steering wheel nags on V12.4.1 is pretty simple and straightforward. As long as you’re paying attention and looking at the road, you won’t be required to touch the steering wheel. You’ll see a green dot on the screen, letting you know that the enhanced driver monitoring system (DMS) and Vision-Based Attention Monitoring (VBAM) are active.
On the Model S and X, the green dot is on the instrument cluster screen, immediately next to the blue FSD/AP wheel icon. On the Model 3 and Model Y (and Cybertruck, in the future), the green dot indicator is on the top left of the screen, in between the battery indicator and the blue FSD/AP wheel.
However, there are some restrictions baked into this initial implementation. Your eyes cannot be obscured or occluded from the cabin camera. This means that legacy vehicles are ineligible for the new VBAM, along with anyone who installs a physical camera cover for privacy or other reasons.
For the privacy-conscious folks, Tesla has mentioned that cabin camera imagery will not leave the vehicle itself unless you enable data sharing, which is optional. Cabin camera imagery is also not available to view via the API, so third-party integrations cannot view your cabin camera either.
The green dot on the center display
Whole Mars Catalog
Restrictions
There are some other catches too. The cabin camera is currently unable to see through sunglasses due to the polarization. The car will display “Attention monitoring unavailable, sunglasses use detected” on the screen. This could change in the future as Tesla figures out how to best take advantage of its cabin cameras. However, it can see through regular glasses just fine – so eyeglass wearers, rejoice!
Attention monitoring unavailable, sunglasses use detected
Vehicles that do not have IR lights in the cabin will also not be able to take advantage of VBAM at night – as the cameras in vehicles without IR lights are unable to see at night. Tesla does offer a refit for vehicles to upgrade to IR-capable cameras – put in a service ticket if you’re interested through the Service Menu on the app.
If it cannot find your eyes due to any of these restrictions, the green light will not come on, and the regular wheel nags that you are used to will continue.
Warnings and Suspensions
If VBAM determines that you’re not paying attention – initially a screen warning will appear, telling you to pay attention to the road. This can be dismissed quickly by just reverting your attention to the road ahead of you. You won’t have to touch the steering wheel to dismiss the nag.
However, if you continue to not pay attention and the DMS detects improper usage, you will receive an Autopilot Strikeout, and FSD will disengage. Before a Strikeout occurs, there will be multiple auditory and visual warnings, ensuring you have a few moments to bring your attention back to supervising FSD.
You can receive up to 5 Strikeouts before the FSD becomes suspended. One strikeout will be lifted per 7-day period in which you do not receive a Strikeout. If you hit 5 Strikeouts, it could be up to 5 weeks before you clear all of them! If you receive another Strikeout within that 7-day period after an initial Strikeout, the 7-day period is reset.
Other Changes
Elon Musk has mentioned that V12.4 was supposed to be focused on user comfort, by reducing hard acceleration and braking. According to Musk, it should have a 5-10x improvement between user disengagements.
Early Access owners have mentioned that 12.4 tends to be more assertive and less hesitant when it comes to intersections, stop signs, and parking lots. Owners have also noticed improvements in the “lane dancing”, where FSD V12.3 would stray in between lanes for too long while changing lanes.
Of additional note is that Vision Autopark is slightly faster – but this is the same Vision Autopark speed increase that rolled out to customers who have already received the Spring Update. For everyone else, expect a 2-3x improvement in how fast Vision Autopark changes directions, and how fast it maneuvers in general. As of the Spring Update, it can now park in even tighter spaces.
Sadly, some previously announced features were missed out on in this release of FSD V12.4.1. Namely, the key features of Banish Autopark and Park Seek. For the time being, users will still have to disengage FSD and then engage Autopark once they find their parking spot.
Banish Autopark, or “Reverse Summon” was thought to arrive in V12.4 as part of the comfort update according, allowing you to choose a parking spot type preference, exit the vehicle, and then have the car park itself.
Additionally, Park Seek – which would allow FSD to automatically find a parking spot in a parking lot, and then engage Autopark automatically, was initially a confirmed feature, but is not present in this release.
Finally, Hand Gesture recognition was supposed to come in an update “later in May” – but given that FSD V12.4 has missed previous deadlines – no surprise to people familiar with the “2 week policy” – there is no confirmation yet if that feature has made it into this build. It is very possible that the employee in question may have been referring to V12.5 – which is also expected to bring vehicle-to-fleet communication.
Given that it just rolled out to employees yesterday, and then to “OG” FSD Beta owners today, we could expect 2024.15.5 – the version that contains V12.4.1 – to hopefully continue rolling out to customers next week. Everyone with an update under 2024.15.5 - so users on 2024.3.25, 2024.8.9, and 2024.14.11 – should be eligible to receive this update. The very few vehicles already on 2024.20 with the Adaptive Headlights functionality will have to wait a bit longer!
In an undocumented change in Tesla update 2024.20 and later, Tesla has added a minor, but privacy-focused change to its software. Tesla has a user privacy-first focused policy, which aligns with the expansion of user privacy changes.
Location Privacy
Since late 2023 (update 2023.38), Tesla has been showing a small location icon at the top of the screen any time the vehicle’s location is being accessed, either by Tesla or a third-party app.
This includes someone using the Tesla app, which displays the vehicle’s location on a map. However, as of update 2024.20 and later, Tesla is now expanding the information shown.
Previously, when the icon was tapped, it would display a general message explaining why the icon was appearing. The message stated:
“This icon appears when an app requests your vehicle's live location data. You can turn off sharing anytime in Controls > Safety > Allow Mobile Access, including all Tesla app access. When this setting is on, your vehicle communicates directly with the Tesla app and other apps, but Tesla doesn't track your location.”
The same text is still displayed, but now boldly says, “This icon appears when an app requests your vehicle’s life location data.”.
More importantly, Tesla now displays the service that is accessing the vehicle’s location (h/t DriveTeslaCanada). So if someone opens the Tesla app, the vehicle will now display that the vehicle’s location is being accessed by the “Tesla Mobile App.” In addition, it appears to also display which Tesla driver or account is viewing the location of the vehicle. If it’s a third-party app or service accessing the vehicle’s location, Tesla will display the name of the registered third-party app.
Disabling Location Sharing
Tesla states that you can still turn off sharing in the same location as before (Controls > Safety > Allow Mobile Access), but doing so prevents many features of the Tesla app from working. If you use a third-party service, the location information is also tied to gathering detailed data on the vehicle, making it an “all or nothing” option.
If you have a service request active, Tesla Service may also ask you to re-enable Location Services so that Mobile Service can find your vehicle.
Unfortunately, there isn’t a history of which apps have accessed your vehicle’s location over a certain period. The location icon and detailed information are only available for a few seconds when the icon is displayed.
Rimac, the company behind the Rimac Nevera electric hypercar, has announced that it intends to produce a robotaxi, and it looks quite similar to Tesla’s concepts. Much of what we’ve heard about Tesla’s upcoming robotaxi, the Cybercab, is featured in Rimac’s autonomous vehicle. From the two seats to the airy interior and the center-screen-focused interior, it’s all here, although there are significant differences as well. Rimac’s prototype, called Verne, was revealed on Wednesday, June 26th.
Verne Robotaxi
Verne will include a 43
MotorTrend
The Verne is expected to begin operation in 2026 and is a two-seater robotaxi using Mobileye’s LiDAR technology. The vehicle is expected to be a level 4 autonomous vehicle, which means it would still require remote support for handling complex situations, similar to Waymo’s work in San Franciso.
The Verne has a 43” display, and 17 speakers, and is supposedly designed to emulate “a room on wheels”, with an inside-out design concept. Interestingly, rather than regular doors, the Verne has doors that swing forward horizontally, along with a keypad-based entry system.
A smaller screen between the front seats lets you control certain aspects of the vehicle
MotorTrend
Rimac says they have signed agreements to launch in 11 cities in the EU, the UK, and the Middle East. They have also mentioned they are negotiating contracts with 30 more cities worldwide.
Rimac also showed off images of its robotaxi app and a concept building for its robotaxis – presumably a charging and service hub.
The verne will feature sliding doors, a lot like a minivan
MotorTrend
Comparing Rimac’s Robotaxi to Tesla’s
Although Tesla has yet to reveal the Cybercab, there are several things Tesla has already talked about for their upcoming robotaxi. One key difference between Rimac’s vision and Tesla’s is that Tesla appears to be chasing the cheapest possible transport, with Tesla previously touting ride prices that would rival bus ticket prices. While Rimac appears to focus more on an ideal experience. While everyone loves extra luxury, at the end of the day, price usually wins.
The Rimac robotaxi app
MotorTrend
One example is Tesla’s single center screen, compared to Rimac’s two screens. In addition to the viewable 43” center display, which presumably is not a touch-screen, Rimac has a separate screen and controls between both passenger seats. Tesla’s approach appears to focus on a single screen, with the user controlling much of the car’s control such as music and climate through Tesla’s robotaxi app.
Another example is Rimac’s idea of including an entry pad and screen on the outside of the vehicle for passenger to be able to unlock the vehicle. Tesla’s approach to unlocking a vehicle is expected to rely on temporary keys that are tied to user’s phones leveraging ultra wideband, a lot like how Tesla’s phone keys work today on newer vehicles.
Tesla’s approach to autonomy is also drastically different than Mobileye’s, which relies on radar, LiDAR and more cameras than Tesla’s Autopilot suite today.
Viability
This announcement from Rimac is a bit of an oddity. As a company, Rimac has produced less than 150 vehicles in their short lifespan – all hand-designed and hand-produced Rimac Nevara hypercars. Their ability to scale to produce more than a handful of these Verne robotaxis, while visually appealing, is questionable at best.
On the same front, Rimac recently received a $200M Euro grant from the EU as part of a package to develop an economic recovery plan for Croatia. Rimac has also received $80M Euros in funding from Hyundai and Kia – but that was to collaborate on a high-performance fuel cell electric vehicle, and a high-performance EV sports car.
The exterior of the Verne robotaxi
MotorTrend
Beyond that, Rimac has never done any work with autonomy – the self-driving tech that is running the Verne is entirely based on the outsourced work from Mobileye. It seems that the Verne will serve as Mobileye’s real-life test on whether its technology can be integrated into a Robotaxi platform on its own.
Tesla previously used Mobileye’s technology for its own autonomy during its inception years (AP 1) but quickly moved on towards using its own vision-based camera tech instead.
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