NEW YORK, Jan 24, 2026, 07:34 (EST) — Market closed
- Tesla shares closed almost unchanged at $449.06 on Friday.
- The company is steering new buyers in the U.S. and Canada toward its $99-a-month Full Self-Driving subscription, which now covers features that used to come bundled.
- Investors are turning to regulatory cues and Tesla’s earnings on Jan. 28 for the next market trigger.
Tesla shares closed nearly flat on Friday, slipping just $0.25 to $449.06. The move came after the company shifted more of its driver-assist features to a monthly subscription model in the U.S. and Canada.
This shift matters now as Tesla pushes to prove it can generate revenue from software, not just vehicle sales, amid cooling demand and tightening margins due to EV price cuts. Autonomy revenue, in particular, often drives the stock’s biggest moves.
From Davos, Musk stoked the story further, claiming Tesla could secure regulatory green lights in Europe and China for its driver-supervised Full Self-Driving system as soon as next month. He also revealed that Tesla has launched robotaxi rides in Austin without safety drivers onboard. After word spread about these driverless trips, Tesla’s stock jumped 4.2% on Thursday.
Some shareholders are demanding more than just promises. “For Optimus, what they (the market) need is credible evidence of scalable manufacturing, a regulatory path, and unit economics if possible,” said Ken Mahoney, CEO of Mahoney Asset Management, a Tesla shareholder.
In North America, Tesla has removed certain driver-assistance features from new vehicles. Now, customers must subscribe to the Full Self-Driving (Supervised) service at $99 a month to access self-steering and related tech. Elon Musk warned the subscription cost “would rise over time.” Reuters
Tesla’s Full Self-Driving is an advanced driver-assistance system. It can handle steering on highways and city roads but still demands the driver’s attention and supervision. The company has increasingly pushed this angle as it aims to create a steady stream of recurring revenue.
Tesla is putting a deadline on the move: after Feb. 14, buyers won’t be able to pay $8,000 upfront for FSD, Reuters reported. Investors will be looking to see if this shift boosts subscription numbers—or just frustrates customers who only want simple lane-keeping without shelling out for everything.
California’s Department of Motor Vehicles has given Tesla 60 days to revamp its marketing or risk a 30-day suspension of its retail sales license, Reuters reported. A key demand: Tesla must stop using the Autopilot name.
The market is closed for now, and traders face two key questions come Monday: the pace of Tesla’s robotaxi rollout, and if Europe and China will approve its supervised system as Musk has projected.
Plenty can still derail the process. Approvals might be delayed, and a single safety incident in a driverless test could spark investigations, halts, or stricter rules—especially since regulators are already wary of how driver-assist systems are presented and deployed.
Tesla’s next major milestone arrives on Jan. 28 with its fourth-quarter report, scheduled after the market closes. The company will hold a management webcast with a Q&A session later the same day.
