Tesla Test Driver Dies On Autopilot

The Tesla Model S electric powered car can go 265 miles on a charge 

Driver in first known fatal self-driving car crash was also driving so fast that ‘he went so fast through my trailer I didn’t see him’, the truck driver involved said

The Tesla driver killed in the first known fatal crash involving a self-driving car may have been watching a Harry Potter movie at the time of the collision in Florida, according to a truck driver involved in the crash.

The truck driver, Frank Baressi, 62, told the Associated Press that the Tesla driver Joshua Brown, 40, was “playing Harry Potter on the TV screen” during the collision and was driving so fast that “he went so fast through my trailer I didn’t see him”.

The disclosure raises further questions about the 7 May crash in Williston, Florida, which occurred after Brown put his Model S into Tesla’s autopilot mode, which is able to control a car while it’s driving on the highway.

The fatal crash, which federal highway safety regulators are now investigating, is a significant setback and a public relations disaster for the growing autonomous vehicle industry. Tesla Motors Inc’s shares, however, were down less than 1% on Friday in early trading.

Baressi, who did not immediately respond to requests for comment, said the Harry Potter movie “was still playing when he died and snapped a telephone pole a quarter mile down the road”. He told the AP, however, that he heard the movie but didn’t see it.

The Florida highway patrol told Reuters that there was a portable DVD player in the vehicle. According to Tesla’s account of the crash, the car’s sensor system, against a bright spring sky, failed to distinguish a large white 18-wheel truck and trailer crossing the highway. In a blogpost, Tesla said the self-driving car attempted to drive full speed under the trailer “with the bottom of the trailer impacting the windshield of the Model S”.

The top of the vehicle was “torn off by the force of the collision”, according to a police report in the local Levy County Journal.

Baressi was uninjured. Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, tweeted his condolences regarding the “tragic loss”, but the company’s statement deflected blame for the crash. His 537-word statement noted that this was Tesla’s first known autopilot death in roughly 130m miles driven by customers.

“Among all vehicles in the US, there is a fatality every 94 million miles,” the statement said. It goes on to say that the car’s autonomous software is designed to nudge consumers to keep their hands on the wheels to make sure they’re paying attention. “Autopilot is getting better all the time, but it is not perfect and still requires the driver to remain alert,” the company said.

News of the death came just as BMW announced that it is joining forces with US computer chip firm Intel and Mobileye, an Israeli tech company, to develop its own self-driving cars.

Google, Uber and numerous automakers have also tested self-driving technology. BMW said the goal of the new collaboration was to develop cars that would eventually allow them to take their eyes off the road.

Brown, who owned a technology company called Nexu Innovation, was a Tesla enthusiast who posted videos of his car on autopilot on YouTube. One of them showed his vehicle avoiding a crash on the highway. The footage racked up 1m views after Musk tweeted it.

One of his first videos appeared to show Brown temporarily driving with no hands in slow-moving traffic. The Associated Press also reported that records show he received eight speeding tickets in six years.

Since Tesla introduced the autopilot mode last October, Model S drivers have recorded videos of themselves online pushing the technology to its limits.

On YouTube, there are multiple videos showing drivers with their hands off the wheel. Musk has advised against this. However, one of the videos was uploaded by actress Talulah Riley, Musk’s second wife.

At the end of Tesla’s blogpost announcing Brown’s death, the company described the victim, who they did not name, as someone with “a loving family and we are beyond saddened by their loss”.

“He was a friend to Tesla and the broader [electric vehicle] community, a person who spent his life focused on innovation and the promise of technology and who believed strongly in Tesla’s mission.”

Guardian

« Is Edward Snowden Really A Russian Agent?
Chilcot: False Intelligence Led To Iraq Invasion Which Spawned IS »

CyberSecurity Jobsite
Perimeter 81

Directory of Suppliers

LockLizard

LockLizard

Locklizard provides PDF DRM software that protects PDF documents from unauthorized access and misuse. Share and sell documents securely - prevent document leakage, sharing and piracy.

BackupVault

BackupVault

BackupVault is a leading provider of automatic cloud backup and critical data protection against ransomware, insider attacks and hackers for businesses and organisations worldwide.

CSI Consulting Services

CSI Consulting Services

Get Advice From The Experts: * Training * Penetration Testing * Data Governance * GDPR Compliance. Connecting you to the best in the business.

DigitalStakeout

DigitalStakeout

DigitalStakeout enables cyber security professionals to reduce cyber risk to their organization with proactive security solutions, providing immediate improvement in security posture and ROI.

MIRACL

MIRACL

MIRACL provides the world’s only single step Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) which can replace passwords on 100% of mobiles, desktops or even Smart TVs.

Willis Towers Watson

Willis Towers Watson

Willis Towers Watson is a global risk management, insurance brokerage and advisory company. Services offered include Cyber Risks insurance.

Secure India

Secure India

Secure India provides Forensic Solutions that help Government and Business in dealing with prevention and resolution of Cyber related threats.

Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)

Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)

KIT is a leading research and education institutions with strong capabilities in information systems and security.

CommuniTake

CommuniTake

CommuniTake builds security, enablement, and management solutions to provide people and organizations with better, and more secure mobile device use.

PRESENSE Technologies

PRESENSE Technologies

PRESENSE Technologies specializes in monitoring and enforcing IT security policies at critical points in the network and on end systems.

Intel Capital

Intel Capital

Intel Capital, Intel's strategic investment organization, backs innovative technology startups and companies worldwide. We invest in a broad range of hardware, software, and services.

Avertium

Avertium

Avertium is the managed security and consulting provider that companies turn to when they want more than check-the-box cybersecurity.

Madrona Venture Group

Madrona Venture Group

Madrona Venture Group invests in seed and early-stage technology companies in areas including cybersecurity.

South West Cyber Resilience Centre (SWCRC)

South West Cyber Resilience Centre (SWCRC)

The South West Cyber Resilience Centre (SWCRC) is led by serving police officers, as part of a not-for-profit partnership with business and academia.

Eureka Security

Eureka Security

Eureka help organizations securely use any cloud data storage technology they need without having to compromise on security.

CyberUSA

CyberUSA

CyberUSA is a collaboration of leaders and states focused on a common mission purpose of enabling innovation, education, workforce development, enhanced cyber readiness and resilience.

DataSolutions

DataSolutions

DataSolutions is a leading value-added distributor of transformational IT solutions in the UK and Ireland.

Amazon Web Services (AWS)

Amazon Web Services (AWS)

Amazon Web Services is the world’s most comprehensive and broadly adopted cloud platform, offering fully featured services from data centers globally.

Circle Security

Circle Security

Circle’s breakthrough security API unifies solutions for identity and data security into one architecture and empowers organizations to secure their identity, data and privacy in their applications.

Vambrace Cybersecurity

Vambrace Cybersecurity

Vambrace is an experienced cybersecurity consultancy and operations outsourcer helping you to secure your business in an increasingly-hostile cyber environment.

Jersey Cyber Security Centre (JCSC)

Jersey Cyber Security Centre (JCSC)

Jersey Cyber Security Centre is the jurisdiction's Cyber Emergency Response Team (CERT) and national technical authority for cyber security.