Tesla hiring for FSD testers in Australia again? New Vehicle Operators Sydney (Test Driver) job ad – techAU
Back in 2023, Tesla Australia advertised for a ‘Vehicle Operator (Test Driver). The position description detailed the role as a limited term (3 months) that would help improve Tesla’s Autopilot System.
The role required the successful candidate(s) to collect data from Tesla vehicles daily, write reports etc. Under the heading of ‘What you’ll bring, was the following line.
‘Familiarity with ADAS/Autopilot systems and their sensors is preferred’.
This line, combined with the rest of the detail in the PD, made it obvious that this was Tesla gearing up for the Australian launch of Full-Self Driving. We’d seen this kind of hiring internationally, starting with employees, before rolling the program to early beta users and ultimately the general public.
Unfortunately the positions were not renewed and the project disbanded, with concerns about Australia’s commitment to follow the UNECE’s efforts to harmonise vehicle systems. That created an uncertain future for Australian regulation which in-turn left Tesla in a difficult position.
What changed today?
Today, we received a tip that Tesla has posted a new job ad for a ‘Vehicle Operator Sydney (Test Driver). Naturally this sounds very promising.
With a similar sounding job title, and some very similar wording in the PD, this sure sounds like Tesla is back at it, hiring to prepare for a future FSD launch.
That line that was called out above, is no longer found in the PD, which specifically talks about FSD, however the rest of the comments around driving in shifts, collecting data, writing reports is all there.
This time the line reads..
‘Familiarity with driver assistance systems’.
In the broad sense of the terms, FSD and Autopilot are both driver assistance systems, so this perhaps is cleverly worded to obfuscate.
Compare the pair
The image above is a side-by-side comparison of the new role (left) and the previous role (right). Below is the list of items that are exactly the same between the PD in 2023 and the new one in 2025.
✅Operate a vehicle in a designated area for data collection
✅Start/Stop recording devices and do minor equipment/software debugging when necessary
✅Analyze/report data collected during shift
✅Provide feedback and suggest improvements to improve data collection processes
✅Write daily drive reports detailing observations and issues
✅Check vehicle is in proper and safe working order every day
✅Clean driving record and safe driving habits
✅Minimum 2 years of daily driving experiences
✅Excellent attention to detail and highly observational
✅Excellent written and spoken English
✅Excellent PC skills, particularly MS Office (Word, Outlook, Excel)
✅Ability to work a flexible schedule, Day/night shifts with the ability to work 1 day per weekend. Overtime is also typical for this position.
Below is perhaps the most significant difference in skills required.
❌Familiarity with ADAS/Autopilot systems and their sensors is preferred
✅Familiarity with driver assistance systems (new)
The item below has been removed.
❌Basic knowledge of vehicle systems and how they work, such as brakes and power assisted steering is preferred.
NEW addition
38 hours per week, Most shifts will be morning 6am – 2pm.
Tesla currently supports FSD in 4 countries, recently adding Mexico. At the end of 2024, the Tesla AI team listed Europe and China releases (or at least testing) in Q1 of 2025. With 6 weeks of that term left, and the comments on the Q4 earnings call, that seems unlikely to be achieved.
Hopefully Tesla is reconsidering their international lineup and moving focus to countries like Australia.
If you’re interested in the position, you can apply here –
Let us know in the replies if you’d consider the role.
