(Yicai) Nov. 19 -- SAIC Motor’s shares gave up some of their recent gains after Tesla denied speculation that the US electric vehicle giant is discussing licensing its Full Self-Driving technology to the Chinese carmaker.

SAIC [SHA: 600104] closed almost 10 percent lower at CNY16.52 (USD2.28) a share today, while the wider Shanghai market gained 0.7 percent. SAIC’s stock is still up 23 percent since Nov. 11, when the online rumors started.

The social media rumors about Tesla licensing the FSD system to SAIC are false, a representative for Tesla China told Yicai yesterday.

According to the rumors, Tesla plans to allow SAIC to use FSD in the Shanghai-based automaker’s robotaxi fleet and the pair has already had two rounds of talks on the matter.

Analysts noted that while Tesla has denied the rumors of partnering with Chinese automakers on FSD, the possibility of the system entering China still exists. Tesla plans to introduce it to China in the first quarter of next year, according to a roadmap the firm’s artificial intelligence team posted on X on Sept. 5. It is awaiting regulatory approval.

FSD is priced at USD12,000 in the United States, with a monthly subscription fee of USD99. As of Sept. 30, vehicles using FSD had driven over two billion miles.

Tesla estimates that FSD will be safer than human drivers by the second quarter of 2025, Chief Executive Elon Musk said on the California-based company’s third-quarter earnings conference call. “There is no need to wait for robotaxi to experience full autonomy,” Musk said. “We expect to achieve that next year with our existing vehicle line.”

Last month, Tesla unveiled its self-driving Cybercab. Musk said then that the model will have annual production capacity of two million units by 2026.

At the moment US federal regulations prohibit the mass deployment of vehicles without steering wheels or pedals. The president-elect’s team plans to prioritize the creation of a federal framework for fully autonomous vehicles, Bloomberg reported yesterday.

Editor: Futura Costaglione