Tesla Full Self-Driving faces NHTSA safety probe following fatal collision

The NHTSA will determine whether Tesla FSD is safe to use in reduced visibility conditions, among other concerns.

Image via Tesla
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Tesla has found itself under the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's (NHTSA) microscope concerning its Full Self-Driving technology after a recent fatal collision which may be FSD-related. Following the incident, the NHTSA has launched a safety probe into Tesla FSD’s performance under reduced visibility roadway conditions, including fog, glaring sun, and other situations.

The NHTSA posted records related to the Tesla safety probe this week, putting the focus on Full Self-Driving. The probe was prompted by a series of collisions in which FSD was on record to have been active within 30 seconds of the incident in which the vehicle equipped with it was involved. One of these incidents ended with a pedestrian fatality. As such, the NHTSA has explicitly stated it intends to investigate “failure of the system engineering controls to react appropriately to reduced roadway visibility conditions” in Tesla vehicles with FSD, including Model S, X, 3, Y, and Cybertrucks.

Elon Musk at the We, Robot Tesla event speaking on Full Self-Driving.
During the recent We, Robot event, Elon Musk claimed Tesla expects to have "unsupervised FSD" in Texas and California by some time in 2025.
Source: Tesla

Other subjects of the NHTSA probe are as follows:

It will remain to be seen what comes out of the safety probe. It may be another setback for Tesla’s Full Self-Driving technology, especially after Elon and the company just finished repping autonomous Cybercab taxi vehicles. However, if the end result is safer technology, it’s probably good for Tesla and everyone on the road in the long run. Stay tuned for further electric vehicle updates right here at Shacknews.

Senior News Editor

TJ Denzer is a player and writer with a passion for games that has dominated a lifetime. He found his way to the Shacknews roster in late 2019 and has worked his way to Senior News Editor since. Between news coverage, he also aides notably in livestream projects like the indie game-focused Indie-licious, the Shacknews Stimulus Games, and the Shacknews Dump. You can reach him at tj.denzer@shacknews.com and also find him on Twitter @JohnnyChugs.

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