Oh, let the lawsuits begin.
Some automaker had to be first to see a driver die in the mad rush toward autonomous driving, and Tesla won the bleak lottery via its Autopilot mode. According to the Associated Press, a Tesla driver using the automaker’s autonomous driving mode died in Florida last month. Now, investigations are underway at the state and federal levels (and within Tesla hallowed halls, of course) to see if the car’s Autopilot caused the deadly crash.
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The victim is not named in the report most likely due to the ongoing nature of the investigations. However, reports say the crash occurred southwest of Gainesville on May 7. A semi made “a left turn in front of the Tesla at an intersection of a divided highway where there was no traffic light.” The Tesla S drove under the truck’s trailer, and the driver died due to his injuries.
It’s unclear in any of the official reports why it took almost two months for news of this first droid-drive death to reach the media. Tesla was obviously in no hurry to make noise about it, and it’s possible federal authorities realize the controversy this death could ignite. All parties are therefore treading carefully.
Tesla maintains (and correctly so) that its Autopilot technology in the Tesla S is not 100% autonomous driving. The human behind the wheel is still expected to be aware, involved and ready to take full control. But, that’s the problem with this stampede toward robot cars. Systems like Autopilot want to remove poorly skilled, inattentive drivers from the roads. Sadly, in the meantime, they just make more of them.
By aiding a driver more and more with safety systems and other aids, automakers encourage laziness in their buyers. They rely on the car to do more of the job for them to the point that they forget the car is still there under their command. It’s their responsibility to get it home in one piece. This Florida driver seems to be a prime, forgetful example.
I joined the chorus of other auto writers a while ago insisting that we’ll never see fully autonomous cars because n automaker wanted to be the first to see someone die in a self-controlled vehicle they let out into the world. I thought the victim’s family would receive a legal field day and a big settlement check.
Those crosshairs are no longer a mere possibility, and Tesla sits squarely in the center of them now. Rather than dump all of this on Tesla, it’s fair to say it could’ve been another player like Mercedes-Benz or Audi with their aggressive autonomous programs. But, it’s an awkward coincidence that Tesla was the automaker who wanted to be first to put the first fully affordable and practical electric car on the road. Sadly, it’s the first to see someone die under the guidance of its technology. Time will tell what this costs Tesla in the long run.
