In a recent development, Tesla CEO Elon Musk has announced that the company is open to licensing its Autopilot, Full Self-Driving (FSD), and electric vehicle (EV) technology to other automakers. This comes following the collaboration between Tesla and Ford, which granted Ford access to Tesla’s Supercharger network.
Back in 2014, Tesla made all its patents “open source,” allowing companies to utilize their technology without the fear of being sued. However, it remains unclear if other companies have actively adopted Tesla’s open-sourced patents and to what extent they have integrated the technology into their own products.
While having access to patents is beneficial, directly licensing a technology from the company that designed it is often a more effective approach. This allows for closer collaboration and implementation of the technology. Ford’s partnership with Tesla to implement its NACS charging standards serves as an example of this approach.
With this new announcement, Tesla has opened up the possibility of working directly with other automakers, potentially expanding collaborations beyond its early partnerships with Daimler and Toyota.
In response to an article where GM CEO Mary Barra acknowledged Tesla’s leadership in the electric vehicle market, Musk expressed his willingness to license Autopilot, FSD, or other Tesla technologies to interested parties. However, it’s worth noting that earlier discussions with other automakers about licensing self-driving technology in 2021 did not materialize into concrete agreements.
Tesla aspires to be as helpful as possible to other car companies.
We made all our patents freely available several years ago.
Now, we are enabling other companies to use our Supercharger network.
Also happy to license Autopilot/FSD or other Tesla technology.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 5, 2023
As the automotive industry continues to embrace electric and autonomous technologies, Tesla’s move to offer licensing opportunities indicates a shift towards increased cooperation and technology sharing among automakers. It remains to be seen whether there will be significant interest from other companies to take advantage of this opportunity and collaborate with Tesla on the cutting-edge technologies it has developed.
