The company that made software that controls Tesla Motors’ Autopilot system says it warned the automaker not to allow drivers to take their hands off the steering wheel while using the system but was ignored.
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Mobileye has responded to the new allegations in a statement that suggests Tesla is misleading customers by calling its driver-assistance mode “Autopilot”, insinuating the auto can control itself without any human intervention.
Mobileye’s Mr. Shashua expressed to Musk in May 2015 “safety concerns regarding the use of Autopilot hands-free”, the supplier said. Mobileye sold Tesla important components for its semiautonomous Autopilot system, which came under fire in late June after a traffic fatality was linked to the technology.
DETROIT (AP) The company that made the camera and computer system for Tesla Motors’ semi-autonomous Autopilot says the electric vehicle maker ignored its warnings of safety problems. That function was at the center of a debate over the safety of driver-assist capabilities after Tesla said USA regulators were investigating a fatal accident involving a Model S that was driving on Autopilot.
Tesla’s statement comes in response to Mobileye’s recent criticism of the safety of Tesla’s Autopilot assisted driving technology.
Tesla Motor in hot waters after recent accident on their autopilot program. After the breakup, Mobileye announced a new partnership with Delphi for a next generation self-driving system for cars.
Amnon Shashua, the chairman at Mobileye Chairman spoke with Reuters last Wednesday and disparaged what he viewed was Tesla’s carelessness with regards to driving safety.
Tesla said that Mobileye’s statements are inaccurate and stem from Tesla’s plans to develop its own vision system.
Tesla, for its part, is in the process of upgrading the Autopilot software, shifting reliance from the camera to its radar systems in order to better evaluate environmental inputs and road conditions.
Tesla’s Autopilot, introduced in October, has been the focus of intense scrutiny. Mobileye shares were down nearly 1% in early trade, while Tesla was down 0.1%. “No matter how you spin it”, he added, the system “is not designed for that”.
In a statement, Tesla said the vehicle was too damaged in the crash to transmit data to company servers, and that Gao’s family had not cooperated with the company’s investigation.
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The spat is re-opening the conversation about the safety of Tesla vehicles and its Autopilot driver-assistance mode. Tesla said at the time that Mobileye was not able to keep pace with Tesla’s product advances.
