Tesla looks to be preparing a major overhaul of its in-car graphics, with plans to replace its current Autopilot and Full Self-Driving (FSD) visualization system with Epic Games’ Unreal Engine.
The move, uncovered by well-known Tesla hacker @greentheonly in software version 2025.20, is expected to deliver more detailed, smoother, and lifelike driving visuals. However, as with many recent updates, it will only be for a subset of vehicles in Tesla’s fleet.
From Godot to Unreal
According to green, Tesla’s on-screen driving visualizations have run on the lightweight, open-source Godot engine. While efficient, Godot’s capabilities are limited compared to modern 3D graphics platforms. Unreal Engine, on the other hand, powers blockbuster video games and immersive simulations, offering photorealistic graphics, advanced lighting effects, and dynamic rendering.
This update would significantly enhance what drivers see on their display. Beyond cosmetic upgrades, richer and more precise visuals could strengthen driver confidence in Autopilot and FSD by better reflecting the real-world environment the car perceives.
While the Unreal Engine is not yet publicly available, green was able to activate the feature, but only for the vehicle avatar on the main screen, showing more detail, and the ability to interact with it.
Ok, I am having a bit of trouble getting unreal engine to activate on the cluster, but it looks like on the main screen the car avatar is also controlled by it.
— green (@greentheonly) August 9, 2025
Now you can interact with it and it's getting somewhat more detailed.
See the example: pic.twitter.com/6lpXr6BK0K
Hardware Limitations and Availability
Because Unreal Engine demands more processing power than Godot, the upgrade will initially be limited to vehicles with AMD’s infotainment hardware, found in the latest Model S and Model X, according to what information green was able to uncover. Older Intel-powered vehicles are unlikely to receive the new visuals without a hardware refresh.
Hm, I did not notice it at first, but it looks like Tesla is adding unreal-engine based AP viz (the one you see today is godot-based).
— green (@greentheonly) August 8, 2025
The binaries are already shipping starting from firmware 2025.20 only on amd-based s and x cars for now
time to see if that could be activated…
Although Tesla has not confirmed when the update will roll out, a prime candidate for when this could appear is in the company’s annual Holiday Software Update.
While we wait, here’s an example of what Tesla’s Autopilot and FSD visualizations could look like with this Unreal update.
Tesla’s Autopilot visualization could look like this with Unreal Engine https://t.co/OOKNpeDM6F pic.twitter.com/mnjaxW36tO
— The Tesla Newswire (@TeslaNewswire) August 13, 2025
