Tesla Hid Fatal Accidents to Keep Autonomous Driving Tests Going

Based on Tesla's internal leaked data and lawsuit records, indications have emerged that public road testing of Autopilot and autonomous driving features continued even while major accidents and defects were sufficiently known.

Key points are as follows.

• The leaked materials confirmed over 2,400 sudden acceleration-related complaints and over 1,000 Autopilot-related accidents, with many items marked as unresolved.
• Some vehicles showed unexplained sudden acceleration and sudden braking, raising concerns that misperception of surroundings could lead to fatal collisions at high speeds.
• In a fatal accident lawsuit, vehicle data that Tesla claimed had been deleted was reportedly recovered, and it was confirmed that the vehicle detected the obstacle at the time of the accident but only sounded a warning right before the collision without any avoidance maneuver.
• A U.S. jury ordered Tesla to pay over $243 million in damages, and subsequent investigations by the Department of Justice and NHTSA (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) are also ongoing.
• Whistleblowers testified that Tesla prioritized speed over safety, and there are also predictions that this ruling could set a precedent for additional lawsuits.

The issue at stake goes beyond simple driver error, focusing on the defects in autonomous driving assistance systems, whether that information was disclosed, and how far responsibility extends for testing on public roads.