Tesla Cybertruck. Tesla
However, Tesla’s fine print instructs users to remain vigilant at all times while driving, with hands on the wheel and attention focused on the road. While interacting with regulators, Tesla categorizes its most advanced Full Self-Driving technology as Level 2, a far cry from the near Level 5 autonomy the company suggests it is close to achieving. Despite renaming the Full Self-Driving Beta to Full Self-Driving Supervised recently, no significant functional enhancements have been implemented.
Tesla Cybertruck. Tesla
This conflicting messaging has led to misperceptions among the public, leading to numerous accidents and at least 13 fatalities. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration identified Tesla’s lenient driver monitoring as a common factor in these incidents, resulting in the company’s largest recall in 2023. Regulators are now concerned that Tesla’s ease of reverting to previous software versions without critical updates facilitates continued misuse by misinformed drivers.
The ongoing federal investigations are still in their preliminary stages, with prosecutors collecting information rather than initiating charges. The potential consequences for Tesla and Musk remain uncertain until further developments occur (as Musk was previously penalized $20 million by the SEC). This investigation, concerning a more substantial issue than a mere misleading tweet, may lead Musk to regret the possibility of another $20 million penalty.
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