Teen In Tesla On Autopilot Collides With Semi-Truck, Charged With 'Careless Driving': Report

A Tesla Inc TSLA vehicle running on its autopilot software reportedly collided with a truck in Pennsylvania.

What Happened: The Tesla vehicle crashed into the rear end of a stationary Freightliner semi-truck providing traffic control on a highway, Reuters reported, citing police officials. The car was running on Autopilot and was driven by an 18-year-old who has been charged with “careless driving,” the report added. No one was injured.

Earlier this year, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said that it would open an investigation into a crash involving a 2022 Model Y vehicle suspected of using Tesla’s advanced driver assistance system and a 17-year-old.

Since 2016, NHTSA has reportedly opened about 40 crash investigations involving Tesla vehicles that may have been driven in Autopilot mode.

Why It Matters: According to the Tesla website, Autopilot features enables the user to steer, accelerate and brake automatically within its lane. However, it does not make the vehicle autonomous given that it still requires supervision by the one behind the wheel.

The EV giant has time and again reiterated the safety of autopilot. In the impact report released in April, Tesla said that autopilot-engaged vehicles crashed only 0.18 times per million miles in 2022 as compared to the general U.S. fleet which witnessed 1.53 accidents within the same distance.

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