Watch a Tesla Model 3 Take Its First Fully Autonomous Drive on Public Roads
Elon Musk believes that the rising cost of self-driving software will make its vehicles an appreciating asset, instead of the other way around.
While the video is admittedly impressive, it's important to note that the route doesn't address many possible road conditions, or even the average commute most civilians have to traverse every day. There was very little traffic on the road, only basic road signs that prompted the Model 3 to "stop and go"—at the very most—and few road markings. In addition, the self-driving Tesla didn't have to deal with cyclists or pedestrians possibly crossing streets unexpectedly.
Also, funny enough, the Model 3 was traveling 10 miles per hour faster than the posted speed limit at some point in the video.
Attendees at Autonomy Investor Day were also said to have been able to demo Tesla's Full Self-Driving suite, though they were reportedly not permitted to record.
Tesla demoed a very similar drive before in a Model S all the way back in November 2016. When comparing the two, it's clear that the Model 3's newer hardware and programming have come together to offer smoother inputs and more precise driving. The Model 3 in the video above is using Tesla's newest purpose-built Hardware v3, a specifically-designed ASIC which has enough compute power to meet the automaker's self-driving goals.