Tag Archives: self-driving cars

The Washington Post reports: A jury found Tesla partially liable for a fatal 2019 crash in Key Largo, Florida, and slapped the company with $200 million in punitive damages, a stunning rebuke for CEO Elon Musk’s company, which for years has avoided responsibility when its technology is involved in a crash. After less than a day of deliberation, the eight-person …

The Washington Post reports: A federal jury was selected Monday in a civil trial against Tesla, Elon Musk’s electric vehicle company, which faces allegations that its driver-assistance technology was to blame for a fatal 2019 crash. Naibel Benavides Leon, 20, was killed in the crash in Key Largo, Florida, and her boyfriend, Dillon Angulo, was gravely injured. Benavides Leon’s family …

NBC News reports: Tesla launched its Austin service on June 22. People who’ve gotten an invitation, a group that appears to be composed largely of influencers adjacent to and acolytes of CEO Elon Musk, use an app to call for a ride, similar to ride-hailing apps Uber and Lyft. Each ride costs $4.20, a cannabis-associated number that Musk frequently uses. …

Reuters reports: Tesla failed to persuade a federal judge to end a lawsuit over the death of a woman struck after an Autopilot-equipped Model S ran off the road in Key Largo, Florida, paving the way for a possible trial next month. U.S. District Judge Beth Bloom in Miami said the estate of Naibel Benavides Leon, and her former boyfriend …

Bloomberg News reports: Members of President-elect Donald Trump’s transition team have told advisers they plan to make a federal framework for fully self-driving vehicles one of the Transportation Department’s priorities, according to people familiar with the matter. If new rules enable cars without human controls, that would directly benefit Elon Musk, the Tesla Inc. chief executive officer and Trump mega-donor …

The Associated Press reports: The U.S. government’s road safety agency is investigating Tesla’s “Full Self-Driving” system after getting reports of crashes in low-visibility conditions, including one that killed a pedestrian. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says in documents that it opened the probe on Thursday after the company reported four crashes when Teslas encountered sun glare, fog and airborne …

Axios reports: Tesla CEO Elon Musk unveiled a self-driving vehicle with no steering wheel or pedals Thursday night, saying it would go into production before 2027. Musk has been teasing the robotaxi for years, but the so-called Tesla Cybercab took a step closer to becoming a reality when it dropped Musk off at the stage for the company’s “We, Robot” …

Reuters reports: The parents of a motorcyclist who was killed in a 2022 crash involving a Tesla Model 3 on Autopilot in Utah sued the electric carmaker and the vehicle’s driver, claiming that the driver assistant software and other safety features are “defective and inadequate.” Landon Embry, 34, died on the scene after the Model 3 put on Autopilot at …

Reuters reports: U.S. prosecutors are examining whether Tesla committed securities or wire fraud by misleading investors and consumers about its electric vehicles’ self-driving capabilities, three people familiar with the matter told Reuters. While Tesla has warned drivers to stay ready to take over driving, the Justice Department is examining other statements by Tesla and Chief Executive Elon Musk suggesting its …

Reuters reports: U.S. auto safety regulators said Friday they have opened an investigation into whether Tesla’s recall of more than 2 million vehicles announced in December to install new Autopilot safeguards is adequate. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said it was opening an investigation after the agency identified concerns due to crash events after vehicles had the recall …

CNN Business reports: Tesla has settled a high-profile case that was set to put the electric car company and its controversial automated-driving system on trial starting Monday. Terms of the settlement were not disclosed. Jury selection was set to begin Monday in a wrongful death suit filed by the family of a former Apple engineer who died after his Tesla …

Bloomberg News reports: Tesla Inc. plans to unveil its robotaxi on Aug. 8, according to a statement. The shares jumped 3.2% as of 4:59 p.m. after regular trading in New York. The stock was down 34% this year through Friday’s close. The promise of a fully autonomous vehicle has long been key to Tesla’s lofty valuation. In recent weeks, Tesla …

The Washington Post reports: Tesla is recalling more than 2 million vehicles to fix Autopilot systems that U.S. safety regulators determined did not have enough controls to prevent misuse. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Tesla’s method of ensuring drivers are still paying attention while the partially automated system is activated is “insufficient.” The recall comes after a years-long …

Reuters reports: Florida judge found “reasonable evidence” that Tesla Chief Executive Elon Musk and other managers knew the automaker’s vehicles had a defective Autopilot system but still allowed the cars to be driven unsafely, according to a ruling. Judge Reid Scott, in the Circuit Court for Palm Beach County, ruled last week that the plaintiff in a lawsuit over a …

The Washington Post reports: The school bus was displaying its stop sign and flashing red warning lights, a police report said, when Tillman Mitchell, 17, stepped off one afternoon in March. Then a Tesla Model Y approached on North Carolina Highway 561. The car — allegedly in Autopilot mode — never slowed down. It struck Mitchell at 45 mph. The …

The Guardian reports: A California judge has tentatively ordered Elon Musk to be interviewed under oath about whether he made certain statements regarding the capabilities of Tesla’s Autopilot features after the company questioned the authenticity of the remarks, claiming Musk is a “target for deep fakes”. The ruling came in a lawsuit against Tesla, filed by the family of Walter …

The Guardian reports: Elon Musk is facing yet another lawsuit as shareholders of Tesla accuse the chief executive and his company of overstating the effectiveness and safety of their electric vehicles’ autopilot and full self-driving technologies. Shareholders have alleged in the proposed class-action lawsuit that Tesla defrauded them over four years with false and misleading statements that concealed how its …

Bloomberg News reports: The US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration asked Tesla Inc. for more information about one of its vehicles colliding with a fire truck in a fatal crash in the San Francisco Bay area. The agency reached out to the manufacturer after the incident in Contra Costa County during the Presidents’ Day holiday weekend. The county fire department …

The New York Times reports: Tesla is recalling more than 362,000 cars equipped with its Full Self-Driving driver-assistance system after government regulators found it increased the risk of accidents. The company’s technology, which can steer, accelerate, brake and change lanes on its own, allows vehicles to travel above legal speed limits and through intersections in “an unlawful or unpredictable manner,” …

Bloomberg News reports: US regulators are investigating Elon Musk’s role in shaping Tesla Inc.’s self-driving car claims, the latest effort by watchdogs to scrutinize the actions of the world’s second-richest person. The review is part of an ongoing Securities and Exchange Commission probe of the company’s statements about its Autopilot driver-assistance system. He personally directed the creation of a 2016 …