3 minTesla skips the Hardware 3 question on its Q3 call: still no upgrade plan for millions of FSD buyers
A shareholder question asking when HW3 owners will learn about a free upgrade for unsupervised FSD was among the most-voted, but Tesla did not read it out. Here is what Tesla has said about HW3 so far, and why the silence matters.
One of the most popular shareholder questions for Tesla's third-quarter earnings call on Wednesday, October 21, went unanswered. It asked when owners of cars with Hardware 3 (HW3) will find out whether they get a free upgrade to support unsupervised Full Self-Driving, and when Tesla will publish a clear plan. Tesla did not read it out, and nobody else raised the topic during the call.
What happened on the call
Tesla takes retail investor questions through the Say platform, where shareholders vote with their shares. Ahead of the call, the HW3 question ranked among the top questions; Electrek counted 557 votes representing about 652,900 shares when it previewed the list. A second, similar question asked for an actual timeline for HW3 upgrades.
During the call, Tesla answered several questions ranked below it and then closed the segment with the words "That's it for the Say.com questions." No analyst asked about HW3, and the words HW3, AI3 or retrofit did not come up, according to Electrek.
What Tesla did say about owner cars was this: AI chief Ashok Elluswamy said the software that runs the Robotaxi Model Y and the Cybercab will reach customer cars with FSD v15, and that the first owner cars could join the Robotaxi network without supervision around the second quarter of 2027. That plan depends on the newer Hardware 4.
What Tesla has said about HW3 so far
- 2016: Tesla said all cars it was building had the hardware needed for full self-driving.
- Q1 2026 call: Elon Musk said HW3 "simply does not have the capability" for unsupervised FSD, noting it has about an eighth of the memory bandwidth of HW4. He mentioned "microfactories" to swap computers and cameras, and a discounted trade-in.
- Q2 2026 call (July): asked by a Truist analyst, Musk said upgrading would be financially sensible "at some point". He suggested skipping HW4 for a newer board, or for the AI5 chip, which would go to the Optimus robot first.
No cost, timeline or process has been announced. Owners have received a reduced FSD v14 "Lite", which remains supervised driver assistance.
How big the problem is
Electrek estimates there are around 4 million HW3 cars on the road. Many owners paid up to $15,000 for FSD on the promise that the hardware was already in the car. Class actions are pending in the US, China and Australia. In the Netherlands, a collective claim has grown to nearly 7,000 HW3 owners, and documents from the Dutch regulator RDW show that Tesla only submitted HW4 cars for its European FSD approval.
Why it matters
Electrek argues the omission was deliberate, since Tesla chooses which questions it reads and in what order. That is an interpretation, not something Tesla has confirmed. But the logic is clear: any concrete answer about HW3 would carry a large cost, whether for retrofits or compensation, and could be used in court. Saying nothing is cheaper for now.
For HW3 owners, the practical picture has not changed. Their cars will keep getting supervised FSD in a lighter form, while unsupervised driving and the Robotaxi network are planned for newer hardware.
What to watch next
The next chance for a public answer is Tesla's annual shareholder meeting on December 3. Also watch the lawsuits: a court ruling or settlement could force Tesla to set out a plan before it chooses to. And watch the FSD v15 release notes for any sign of what, if anything, HW3 cars will receive.
