Tesla had led industry efforts to reform the rules as it seeks to expand its FSD software into Europe, a potential step towards Mr Musk’s plans to launch fleets of fully-autonomous “robotaxis” around the world.
It had hoped the process would pave the way for the widespread adoption of advanced driver assistance systems in Britain and the EU. However, the UNECE recently adopted a stripped-down version of the rules aimed at more basic manoeuvres, such as cars automatically changing lanes on motorways.
Wider-ranging rules that would have allowed the FSD systems to travel around busy cities are now not expected for several years.
“Sadly the decision was made to delay some of these capabilities for urban environments – possibly until 2028(!),” Mr Van Impe wrote in a LinkedIn post announcing his departure from Tesla.
“This impacts Europe’s competitiveness and it’s clear that the type-approval framework needs to evolve to better and more quickly tackle innovative technologies.”
Tesla has been leading industry efforts to agree on the rules for self-driving cars in the region. However, it has in the last few weeks handed governance of the car industry group working on the rules to representatives from BMW and Wayve, the British driverless car company.
Mr Van Impe, who had been key to Tesla’s efforts, has moved to Mr Musk’s SpaceX to work on policy issues there.
As recently as last month Mr Musk had said Tesla planned to launch FSD in Europe in the first few months of 2025, although this would depend on regulations.
