The Auto Pilot system raises widespread controversy about its safety and effectiveness. Many experts in the sector accuse Tesla of giving drivers the false impression that the car drives itself.
Tesla, the electric car manufacturer, has reached an agreement with the family of a former Apple engineer who was killed in 2018 in a traffic accident while driving his Model X. It is believed that the Autopilot system was activated at the time of the accident.
According to the agreement filed in a San Jose court in California, Tesla will pay an undisclosed amount to the victim’s wife and two children.
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The complaint filed in 2019 states that the Auto Pilot system was “defective” and failed to detect the concrete guardrail, and did not brake the car but rather accelerated as it approached the median.
The US Transportation Regulatory Authority indicated in a preliminary report that the driver was not keeping his hands on the steering wheel at the time of the accident, despite alerts issued by the on-board computer of the car.
Tesla faces other lawsuits over the “Auto Pilot” system, as the company achieved a victory last October when a jury found that there was no manufacturing defect in the automated driving system in a “Tesla” car involved in another fatal accident.
It is noteworthy that the “Auto Pilot” system allows adapting speed to traffic and maintaining direction in the lane, while Tesla stresses the need for the driver to remain alert and keep his hands on the steering wheel.
