A Tesla Inc. TSLA vehicle, operating on the company’s “Full Self Driving” system, was implicated in a fatal accident near Seattle in April, leading to the death of a motorcyclist.
What Happened: The fatal accident was discovered by investigators from the Washington State Patrol after examining the event-data recorder on the 2022 Tesla Model S, as stated by agency spokesman Capt. Deion Glover. The investigation is still ongoing, with the Snohomish County Prosecutor to decide on any potential charges, AP News reported on Wednesday.
The driver, a 56-year-old man, confessed to using Tesla’s Autopilot system and being distracted by his cellphone while the car was in motion. He was subsequently arrested for investigation of vehicular homicide. The victim, Jeffrey Nissen, 28, of Stanwood, Washington, was declared dead at the scene. This incident marks the second death in the U.S. involving Tesla’s “Full Self-Driving” system.
Tesla has yet to respond to Benzinga’s queries.
Why It Matters: Tesla CEO Elon Musk recently made a statement that the “Full Self Driving” system should be capable of operating without human supervision by the end of this year. However, Tesla maintains that neither its “Full Self-Driving” nor its Autopilot system can drive itself and that human drivers must be prepared to take control at any time.
This incident comes in the wake of a report questioning Tesla’s autonomous driving capabilities after a near-crash experience. Despite the concerns, Musk remains confident that government approval will not hinder the deployment of robotaxis, stating that if billions of miles of data show that unsupervised FSD is safer than humans, no regulator could stand in the way.
Earlier this year, Tesla released a vehicle safety data report, indicating a significantly lower crash rate for vehicles using Autopilot compared to those driven manually. However, the recent fatal accident raises questions about the safety of Tesla’s self-driving technology.
Price Action: Tesla was trading 1.02% higher at $224.90 at the time of writing during Wednesday’s pre-market, according to Benzinga Pro.
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This story was generated using Benzinga Neuro and edited by Pooja Rajkumari
© 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
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