Elon Musk: Tesla is Building a Chinese Autonomous Driving Team and Very Close to L5 Autonomy

CEO Elon Musk disclosed Tesla’s plan for its autonomous driving China team and Shanghai factory in his Q&A formatted video message during the 3rd World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC).

Musk opened his remarks with a recruitment message for Tesla’s autonomous driving team in China. Musk noted that the Chinese local team will not simply move things from the United States, but also conduct original development, design and engineering in China.

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Speaking of autonomous driving technology, Musk revealed that Tesla is very close to achieving level 5, which means navigating roads without any human attention. The leading EV maker will have “the basic functionality for level 5 autonomy complete this year,” according to its CEO.

“I’m extremely confident that level 5 or essentially complete autonomy will happen and I think will happen very quickly,” Musk said in his remarks.

After sharing his insights on artificial intelligence (AI), Musk said Tesla Gigafactory Shanghai will use more AI and its applications but it takes more time to make truly effective use of the technology.

In the end, Musk expressed his wish to visit the Gigafactory soon and attend the WAIC in person next year.

“I am always amazed by how many smart and hardworking people that are in China and how much positive energy there is, and that people are really excited about the future,” Musk concluded.