Tesla’s advantage is not simply that it can send software over the air (OTA); it is that the car’s architecture was designed to make updates across vehicle systems practical. Many traditional automakers began with narrower OTA capabilities, such as infotainment updates, and must coordinate changes across more fragmented electronics and software.
What does “whole-car OTA” mean?
A car contains many electronic control units (ECUs), which operate systems such as the battery, powertrain, braking, body controls, safety features and infotainment. Whole-car OTA means updates can reach software at the ECU level across vehicle systems—not just maps, a phone app or the central screen. The phrase describes a vehicle’s potential update scope; it does not mean every ECU receives every update, or that every fix can be delivered remotely.
EE Times describes Tesla as able to send software patches directly to individual ECUs for safety, security and feature upgrades. It characterizes many other automakers’ early OTA efforts as limited to telematics or infotainment. The practical difference is whether software can be changed remotely across the vehicle’s functional systems, subject to each model’s hardware and update design.
Why is Tesla’s architecture an advantage?
OTA depends on more than a wireless connection. A vehicle has to identify the right software for its hardware and configuration, deliver it securely, install it across interconnected controllers and manage what happens if an update fails. Automakers also have to validate changes across vehicle variants and ensure the vehicle has sufficient connectivity, storage and computing capacity.
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That is harder when electronic systems have been added over time and use different networks, suppliers and update mechanisms. Egil Juliussen, then IHS Markit’s director of research for infotainment and ADAS, told EE Times: “Tesla is one exception. Its system architecture is built from the ground up to make OTA easier.” The architectural head start helps explain why adding OTA to a legacy vehicle platform can be more complex than adding a software download function.
Tesla has also highlighted the underlying electrical complexity: in 2024, it said automotive electronics complexity had doubled over 20 years and that a typical vehicle required more than 200 connections. Its Low-Voltage Connector Standard reduces connector types to six and is designed to cover more than 90% of typical electrical-device applications. That standard is a hardware simplification effort, not proof by itself that a vehicle can update every system remotely.
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How does Tesla compare with Stellantis and GM?
Traditional automakers are investing in broader software platforms and reporting growing OTA fleets. Their published figures show meaningful scale, but announced architecture plans should not be confused with proof that every vehicle in a portfolio already has Tesla-like update scope or frequency.
| Automaker | Reported OTA scale or frequency | Architecture and scope |
|---|---|---|
| Tesla | Introduced OTA in 2012. In 2025, WIRED quoted Capgemini automotive CTO Jean-Marie Lapeyre saying Tesla once issued 42 updates within six months, while many automakers updated about once a year. This is a historical comparison, not a current fleet-wide update schedule. | EE Times describes direct patches to individual ECUs, with a system built from the ground up for OTA. |
| Stellantis | The company said it delivered more than 94 million OTA updates in 2023. That year it reported 13.8 million monetizable connected vehicles and more than 5 million subscription users. | Stellantis says STLA Brain provides centralized computing and full OTA access to sensors and actuators. Integration readiness was targeted for the end of 2024, with vehicle integration in 2025; those dates are announced targets, not confirmation of deployment across every vehicle. |
| General Motors | GM said in 2025 that more than 4.5 million vehicles were OTA-capable, with the total growing by about 2 million per year. It reported that 1.6 million vehicles received coordinated software updates in 2024. | GM says its next platform will connect propulsion, steering, braking, infotainment and safety through a unified compute core. It is planned to start with the Cadillac Escalade IQ in 2028; this is a future plan, not a description of the whole current fleet. |
The figures measure different things: updates delivered, vehicles capable of OTA, vehicles that received coordinated updates, and connected or subscription users are not interchangeable metrics. They show investment and reach, but do not establish how often each model receives updates or which systems can be changed on every vehicle.
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Why are OTA updates becoming a business model?
Connected vehicles can support recurring subscriptions and paid feature unlocks alongside conventional vehicle sales. That gives automakers a commercial reason to build software platforms, but it also makes OTA part of a wider question: which features are included with a car, which require a subscription, and how long connected services remain available.
In 2021, Stellantis forecast approximately €20 billion in incremental annual software-enabled revenue by 2030, more than €30 billion of investment through 2025, and 34 million monetizable connected cars by 2030. These were company targets, not independently verified results. In 2024, the company reported 13.8 million monetizable connected vehicles and more than 5 million subscription users in 2023. Stellantis Chief Software Officer Yves Bonnefont said in 2023 that the company had shifted toward operating more like a startup, with a focus on speed and internal software capabilities.
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The business ambition does not mean every OTA update is a paid feature. Updates can also address security, safety or existing functionality. For drivers, the key distinction is between software that improves or maintains a vehicle and features or services whose availability depends on a separate purchase or subscription.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What still limits whole-car OTA?
- Connectivity and capacity: Firmware delivery needs a persistent connection at some point, plus enough onboard storage and computing headroom to install and run the software.
- Vehicle variation: A manufacturer must test updates against different hardware, software versions and vehicle configurations; a patch suitable for one model or configuration may not be suitable for another.
- Safe installation and recovery: Updates need secure delivery and a plan for failed installations, including appropriate rollback or recovery states. OTA capability alone does not establish that every update is risk-free.
- Update value and cadence: Being able to update a vehicle does not guarantee that updates will be frequent, useful or available for every system.
OTA suppliers are part of this ecosystem as well as automakers. EE Times names Wind River, Excelfore, Aptiv/Movimento, HERE OTA Connect, Bosch, Continental, Airbiquity and ATS as participants. Their presence illustrates that OTA systems involve specialist software and services; it does not show that any one supplier’s involvement gives a particular vehicle whole-car update capability.
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What should buyers take from the difference?
For a vehicle owner, the useful questions are model-specific: which systems can receive remote software updates, whether updates require a service visit, how the car handles installation and recovery, and whether a connected feature is included or subscription-based. A manufacturer’s OTA fleet total does not answer those questions for an individual vehicle. Tesla’s architectural head start helps explain its reputation for broader and more frequent updates, while Stellantis and GM are building toward more centralized, software-oriented platforms on announced timelines.
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