Tesla’s next FSD model to be 10x larger as legal trouble grows
Tesla is developing a new version of its Full Self-Driving (FSD) model, according to CEO Elon Musk. In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Musk revealed the next-gen FSD architecture will include “~10X params” and “a big improvement to video compression loss.” If internal testing proceeds as expected, the update could be ready for public release by the end of September.
Tesla hasn’t shared technical specifications but a tenfold increase would likely place the new model’s scale in the range of frontier-level AI models, potentially improving its ability to process and respond to complex driving environments. Tesla’s Full Self-Driving system can handle things like navigation, lane changes, and parking, but it still needs a human behind the wheel.
The announcement lands as Tesla faces growing scrutiny over its self-driving tech. On August 1, a Florida jury ordered the company to pay USD 243 million in damages for a 2019 crash where a Model S on Autopilot ran a stop sign and hit a parked SUV, killing one passenger and injuring another. The jury found Tesla 33 percent liable, despite the company arguing the driver was solely at fault, marking the first major verdict against Tesla in a fatal Autopilot case.
Meanwhile, Tesla is also facing fresh legal trouble from its own shareholders. A new class-action lawsuit filed in Texas claims the company misled investors by overstating the capabilities of its Full Self-Driving and robotaxi tech. The suit accuses Tesla of making “materially false and misleading” statements about how effective, and how legal, its autonomous features really are.
All of this comes as Tesla’s robotaxi pilot, which quietly rolled out in Austin in June 2025, is already raising eyebrows. Early videos show the autonomous cars swerving into wrong lanes, braking unpredictably, and even stopping mid-crosswalk. The NHTSA has reached out to Tesla for more details, hinting that regulatory heat may not be far behind.
As of July, the NHTSA has at least 40 open investigations into Tesla’s Autopilot and FSD-related crashes. Tesla has typically responded to concerns with over-the-air updates rather than issuing full recalls.
Despite the controversy, Tesla’s stock rose 2% following Musk’s post. However, no official timeline or technical breakdown for the new FSD model has been provided yet.
