Tesla app code reveals cabin camera will verify driver before FSD

This isn't really an energy-efficiency story, but here's what it's about: code found inside Tesla's iOS app suggests a new feature that would use the car's cabin-facing camera to check who is driving before letting "Full Self-Driving" (FSD) turn on. If the camera can't match the driver to an authorized profile, the system would block FSD and show an error message on the phone app.

This is different from what Tesla's cabin camera already does. Since 2021 it has watched drivers for attention and drowsiness, tracking eye and head position to make sure someone is paying attention to the road. The new code points to something else: an identity check that decides whether a specific person is allowed to activate FSD at all, not just whether they're paying attention. This would likely tie into FSD's subscription model, making sure the feature only works for the account holder, and could also matter for rental cars, shared vehicles, or Tesla's robotaxi service, where matching the driver to the person who booked the ride matters.

None of this is confirmed yet. It only exists as strings of code in an app update, and a real feature would also need a matching update to the car's software. Tesla's camera is a basic sensor, not the kind of infrared system used for facial recognition on phones, so it would likely work more as a simple permission check than a precise ID lock, and could run into the same issues that already affect attention monitoring, such as poor lighting, sunglasses, or hats.