Tesla has received regulatory approval to launch unsupervised Full Self-Driving pilot programs in both London and Berlin, marking the first time its end-to-end neural network driving system has been permitted to operate without a safety driver on European roads. A fleet of Cybercabs and modified Model 3 and Model Y vehicles began operating in Westminster and Berlin’s Mitte district on April 8, 2026 — a milestone that Tesla and autonomous vehicle advocates have been working toward for years.
Regulatory Frameworks That Opened the Door
In the United Kingdom, the pilot was made possible by the Automated Vehicles Act 2024, which became law in May 2024 and established a legal framework where an “Authorized Self-Driving Entity” bears legal liability for the vehicle’s actions during autonomous operation. Tesla worked with the Centre for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles and Transport for London to integrate real-time traffic data and satisfy the law’s safety requirements.
In Germany, Tesla leveraged the AFGBV autonomous driving directive, which Germany’s Federal Ministry of Transport describes as making the country “the first in the world to have fully put in place a statutory basis for autonomous driving at Level 4.” The directive was expanded in late 2025 to allow Level 4 operations in designated areas, and the Federal Motor Transport Authority granted Tesla type approval following months of shadow-mode testing across Berlin’s urban roads and the Autobahn.
Ahead of Waymo in Europe
The approvals place Tesla ahead of Alphabet’s Waymo in the race to deploy unsupervised autonomous vehicles in Europe. Tesla completed more than 1.6 million kilometers of FSD testing on EU roads and conducted over 13,000 customer ride-alongs ahead of the launch. Waymo has announced plans to launch a driverless robotaxi service in London by the fourth quarter of 2026, but its London operations remain under supervised testing at this stage.
The Road to a Tesla Network in Europe
Tesla is eyeing a transition from these controlled pilots to a full commercial Tesla Network robotaxi service by 2027. Production of the purpose-built Cybercab began at Gigafactory Texas in February 2026, with mass production ramping this month. Elon Musk has confirmed plans to produce the Cybercab at Giga Berlin as well, positioning Europe as a key early market for the company’s autonomous mobility ambitions.
