Tesla Inc. (TSLA) is making a serious push to bring its Full Self-Driving feature to Europe, with February 2026 marked as the target date for regulatory approval. It's an ambitious timeline, but the electric vehicle maker has been laying the groundwork for over a year.

The Regulatory Roadshow

According to Tesla Europe's social media posts, the company has been busy courting regulators across the EU for more than twelve months. They're not just sending emails and hoping for the best—Tesla has conducted live FSD demonstrations for officials in nearly every EU country, giving them firsthand experience with the technology.

The numbers back up their confidence. Tesla has accumulated over 1 million kilometers of internal testing on European roads spanning 17 countries. The company has also requested early access and pilot release programs while sharing comprehensive safety data in its latest Safety Report.

The Dutch Gateway Strategy

Here's where it gets interesting: Tesla's primary approach centers on working with the Netherlands' approval authority, RDW, to obtain the necessary exemptions for FSD features. This includes ensuring compliance with existing regulations and filing for exemptions on behaviors that aren't currently regulated—like system-initiated lane changes.

Tesla acknowledges that some regulations are outdated, but the company maintains it can preserve safety without sacrificing usability. If everything goes according to plan, RDW should grant national approval in the Netherlands by February 2026. Once that happens, other EU countries can recognize the exemption, effectively opening the door for an EU-wide rollout.

FSD v14 Wins Industry Praise

Meanwhile, Tesla's Full Self-Driving technology continues to evolve rapidly. Ross Gerber, co-founder of Gerber Kawasaki, recently praised the improvements in FSD v14, calling it a substantial upgrade over previous versions. Despite noting some lingering mapping issues, Gerber expressed satisfaction with the system's overall enhancements.

Andrej Karpathy, Tesla's former AI lead, offered an even more colorful comparison—he likened the FSD's performance to a magnetic levitation train, emphasizing its smooth and confident operation. His comments highlight the capabilities of Tesla's HW4 hardware, which has impressed users across the board.

Gary Black, managing director of The Future Fund LLC, reinforced the sentiment by noting significant progress in Tesla's autonomous driving sector. According to Black, FSD v14 has delivered fewer critical disengagements compared to its predecessor, v13, marking a meaningful step forward in reliability.