Elon Musk doesn’t tweak the margins. He detonates the model.
This week, Tesla quietly did something that would be unthinkable for almost any other automaker: it removed Autopilot as a standard feature on its two best-selling vehicles in America, the Model 3 and Model Y. No big press release. No flashy keynote. Just a subtle change on Tesla’s website – and a very loud message to customers.
The era of “basic” Tesla self-driving is over.
Welcome to the subscription age.
Autopilot Is Dead. Long Live FSD.
For years, Autopilot was part of the Tesla identity. Buy the car, get Traffic-Aware Cruise Control and lane-keeping auto-steer. It wasn’t full autonomy, but it felt futuristic and crucially, it came standard.
Not anymore.
New buyers now get Traffic-Aware Cruise Control only – essentially adaptive cruise control, something Toyota and others include by default. Lane-centering? Gone. Auto-steer? Gone.
If you want anything smarter, Tesla has one answer: Full Self-Driving (FSD).
Follow the Money
The timing isn’t accidental.
Just days earlier, Musk announced Tesla would eliminate the $8,000 one-time FSD purchase, pivoting hard to a $99-per-month subscription instead. And he made it clear that price is temporary.
“The $99/month will rise as FSD’s capabilities improve,” Musk posted, adding that the real value explosion happens when drivers can be on their phone or asleep for the entire ride.
Translation:
Recurring revenue beats one-time sales. Every time.
Killing Autopilot doesn’t just simplify Tesla’s software stack – it nudges every buyer toward a subscription, month after month, year after year.
Legal Pressure or Strategic Reset?
Tesla’s move also comes as it faces legal heat in California over allegedly deceptive marketing around Autopilot and FSD. Regulators ruled Tesla overstated the systems’ capabilities, threatening the company’s dealer license before granting a 60-day pause to clean up its messaging.
Removing Autopilot may help Tesla argue it’s no longer blurring the line between “driver assistance” and “self-driving.”
Or it may simply be Musk doing what Musk always does: turning controversy into leverage.
The 10 Million Subscriber Theory
Online, a different theory has taken off.
Some Tesla watchers believe killing Autopilot ties directly to Musk’s new compensation plan – one rumored to include a massive milestone: 10 million paying FSD subscribers.
If that’s the target, the math is simple.
You don’t get there by giving away smart features for free.
Robotaxis Change the Game
The announcement didn’t land in isolation.
Tesla stock jumped after Musk revealed that unsupervised robotaxi rides have officially begun in Austin – no safety driver in the car. Tesla’s AI chief confirmed the rollout is small for now, but growing.
Wall Street loved it.
Still, Tesla isn’t the leader here. Alphabet’s Waymo remains far ahead, with vehicles that operate fully autonomously at scale. Tesla is catching up – but fast enough to justify Musk’s confidence.
The Bigger Bet
From Davos, Musk added another bombshell: FSD could be approved in Europe and China as soon as next month.
If that happens, Autopilot’s death won’t look like a downgrade. It’ll look like a necessary sacrifice.
Tesla isn’t selling cars anymore.
It’s selling autonomy as a service.
And in Elon Musk’s world, if the future doesn’t come with a monthly fee, it’s not the future worth building.
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