Abu Dhabi has officially commenced road trials of Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (Supervised) technology, marking the first time the advanced driver assistance system is being tested on public roads in the emirate under a structured regulatory framework.

The Integrated Transport Centre, an affiliate of the Department of Municipalities and Transport, announced that the trials will take place under driver supervision. The initiative is designed to assess the system’s performance in real-world conditions and verify its operational and safety readiness before any wider rollout.

The testing is being conducted in coordination with the Legislation Lab at the UAE Cabinet General Secretariat, reinforcing the government’s broader push to enable innovation within clearly defined regulatory parameters. Authorities said the framework aims to establish a regional benchmark for evaluating advanced driving and driver assistance technologies while maintaining strict safety standards.

Dr Abdulla Hamad AlGhfeli, Acting Director-General of the Integrated Transport Centre, said the authority’s supervision of the trials underscores its regulatory and legislative mandate. He described the initiative as an important step toward evaluating the technology’s real-world capabilities and gathering the data needed to determine its readiness for potential future expansion.