Tesla 
TSLA could be approaching a major regulatory milestone in China. CEO Elon Musk told shareholders the company expects full approval for its advanced driver-assistance softwaresimilar to its U.S. Full Self-Driving systemby around February or March. The update came during Tesla’s annual meeting, where investors also backed Musk’s $1 trillion compensation package. China has granted only partial approval so far, allowing limited trials, but full authorization could be pivotal as Tesla looks to reignite sales in a market increasingly dominated by domestic EV competitors.
Progress toward that goal appears to be building momentum. Earlier this year, Musk flew to Beijing to meet with Premier Li Qiang, a visit that set the stage for deeper cooperation with regulators. Since then, Tesla has struck a mapping and navigation partnership with Baidu and partly cleared Beijing’s data security and privacy requirementstwo major hurdles for its rollout. To align with local rules on driver-assistance marketing, Tesla also removed the FSD name from its China version, a symbolic but significant move to emphasize transparency about the technology’s limits.
Even so, Tesla’s automation systems remain under close global scrutiny. U.S. safety authorities are investigating several incidents linked to its partial automation features, including vehicles running red lights and other traffic violations. Meanwhile, European regulators have yet to authorize similar capabilities. Still, full approval in China could become a turning pointpotentially strengthening Tesla’s position in the world’s largest EV market and advancing Musk’s longer-term ambition to scale autonomous driving globally.
