Tesla is adding to its in-car entertainment features and will soon offer Netflix and YouTube streaming on its vehicles’ multimedia screens, Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced in a tweet on Saturday (July 27).
Streaming will only be available while the car is parked, though Musk said that “when full self-driving is approved by regulators, we will enable video while moving.”
Tesla already offers a mobile gaming console on its cars’ screens, and the streaming will work in a similar manner, CNBC reported.
Earlier in July, two consumer advocacy groups called on the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the California Department of Motor Vehicles to investigate Tesla’s autopilot technology, which was involved in at least three fatal accidents.
The company said in April that it will introduce a new microchip for self-driving cars, giving Tesla an edge in the autonomous car industry. Musk also said autonomous taxis will be available in 2020.
According to Musk, all Teslas now being produced have the microchip, and the company is already working on the next generation. The chip has been in development since 2016, and Musk initially expected his company to have fully self-driving cars by 2018.
Many carmakers and tech companies, including Alphabet and Uber, are working on bringing autonomous vehicle technology to the market. Despite this, many analysts predict it will be many years before the technology is ready.
Still, Musk insists Tesla has the best self-driving chip because it was designed only for the purpose of autonomous driving, while companies like Nvidia are developing chips that do other things as well.
Uber, General Motors and, of course, Tesla are all competing to be the first to bring self-driving cars to the masses. Alphabet’s Waymo already has a robotaxi fleet in Arizona consisting of retrofitted Chrysler Pacifica minivans, with plans to expand the program.
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