Tesla Settles Lawsuit Over Autopilot Death, Avoiding Trial Before Self-Driving Taxi Unveiling
Tesla has settled a lawsuit that accused the company’s driver-assistance software of being responsible for the death of a California man in 2018. The settlement comes just months before Tesla plans to unveil a self-driving taxi, avoiding a trial that would have put the company’s technology under close scrutiny.
The lawsuit stemmed from the death of Wei Lun Huang, an Apple software engineer known as Walter, who died after his Tesla Model X veered off a highway in Mountain View, California, and crashed into a concrete median barrier. The lawsuit claimed that Tesla’s Autopilot software was defective and lacked the technology to prevent the crash.
Terms of the settlement with Mr. Huang’s family were not disclosed, and Tesla has filed court documents seeking to prevent them from being made public. The trial, which was scheduled to start with jury selection on Monday, would have further fueled the debate about the safety of autonomous driving technology.
Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, has been vocal about the company’s self-driving software and its potential to generate significant revenue. Musk recently announced that Tesla would introduce a self-driving taxi, Robotaxi, in August, a move that could help address criticism that the company has been slow to release new products.
While Tesla’s Autopilot and Full Self-Driving systems can perform various functions, they do not make a car fully autonomous. Drivers are required to stay engaged and be ready to intervene at any moment. In December, Tesla recalled over two million vehicles for a software update under pressure from U.S. regulators.
The National Transportation Safety Board’s investigation into the 2018 crash blamed both Tesla and Mr. Huang, stating that Autopilot had failed to keep the vehicle in its lane and that Mr. Huang had likely been distracted. The settlement of the lawsuit brings an end to years of litigation surrounding the tragic incident.
