Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Cars
  3. News

Tesla’s top rival launches self-driving with full crash coverage at a fraction of the cost

BYD's God's Eye tech is coming for Tesla with a much smaller bill

Add as a preferred source on Google
BYD 2026 Seagull.
CnEVPost / BYD

BYD just delivered another blow to Tesla. The company’s new self-driving package just dropped with a price tag that basically embarrasses Tesla’s driver-assistance service. The Chinese EV giant announced a new service package dubbed God’s Eye, with chairman Wang Chuanfu claiming BYD’s first goal is to achieve “zero traffic accidents.”

In a recent press conference, he announced that BYD will fully cover compensation and repairs for accidents that happen while drivers are using its City Navigation function, without affecting the user’s insurance premiums the following year.

BYD is confident in its self-driving tech

BYD’s new coverage applies to its God’s Eye A/B systems. So new owners get coverage right from delivery, while existing owners will gain access after updating to the new God’s Eye 5.0 over the air. The policy seems to cover at-fault accidents, including repairs to the owner’s vehicle, third-party property damage, and personal injury, as long as the system is used according to regulations.

Recommended Videos

There is also no extra “intelligent driving insurance” purchase, no payout cap, and no hit to next-year commercial insurance premiums. BYD is confident in the tech, showcasing its bold trust with this commitment. Assisted driving still requires drivers to pay attention, and BYD is not magically removing responsibility from the human behind the wheel.

Pricing is where things get real spicy

The real headline here is the cost. BYD is letting users upgrade to God’s Eye B for 12,000 Yuan, which is about $1,770. In China, Tesla’s comparable assisted-driving package has been rebranded as Tesla Assisted Driving and is priced at 64,000 Yuan, or about $9,400, with no subscription option. This basically makes BYD’s upgrade roughly one-fifth of Tesla’s China-market price.

For context, Tesla’s US pricing has changed a lot too. The company currently lists FSD (Supervised) at $99 per month, requiring drivers to stay attentive. And now, Tesla has moved FSD to a subscription-only model for new buyers. Before that, US buyers could purchase FSD outright for $8,000, after Tesla cut the price down from $12,000 in 2024.

So no matter how you dress it, BYD is undercutting Tesla by a huge margin. It is making smart driving cheaper and more accessible. The added commitment just goes to show how it’s willing to build trust as well.

Vikhyaat Vivek
Vikhyaat Vivek is a tech journalist and reviewer with seven years of experience covering consumer hardware, with a focus on…
Smart brings back its original two-seater as an all-electric car with 180 mile range
The iconic Smart two-seater is back, and its bigger battery could make this tiny electric car more practical beyond city streets.
smart #2 Premium

Smart unveiled the all-electric smart #2 at the Paris Motor Show - the same stage where it revealed its first two-seater concept 30 years ago. This new model keeps the tiny footprint that made the original Fortwo a city darling, but it fixes the one thing that held that car back. You're now looking at nearly double the range and a proper fast-charging setup to match.

What makes the Smart #2 better than its predecessor?

Read more
Modern cars love to collect data. Their companion apps appear to be even worse
Think your connected car tracks too much? Take a look at its phone app
Transportation, Vehicle, Car

We've known for years that modern cars aren't particularly shy about collecting data. It turns out the little app you install alongside one is apparently another cause for concern. Researchers at Northeastern University (via Vucense), working with Consumer Reports, tested 21 late-model vehicles from 19 brands and 30 manufacturer companion apps to see where their network traffic went. Nineteen of the 21 cars contacted at least one third party over Wi-Fi, while 11 reached domains classified as advertising, tracking, or analytics services.

For most of the vehicles tested, adding the manufacturer's companion app at least doubled the number of advertising, tracking, and analytics companies contacted. Seventy percent of the apps reached more than five such domains, compared with 29% of the cars.

Read more
Citroën promised us a cheap electric 2CV. The charming concept is finally here, with egg holders and turtle pedals
Citroën’s electric 2CV concept is smaller, lighter, and costs just 15,000 Euros
Citroen 2CV Concept Featured

A few months ago, Citroën told us one of France's most recognizable cars was coming back as a cheap EV. Now we finally know what that actually means. The Citroën 2CV Concept has made its debut at the 2026 Paris Motor Show, previewing the production model Citroën intends to put on European roads by 2028.

Just as promised, it is a fully electric car that is built to be simple and small enough to slot between the tiny Ami and C3 in Citroën's lineup. And sticking true to its legacy, it keeps some of that unique strangeness of the original 2CV.

Read more