Tesla, owned by Elon Musk, is recalling over two million vehicles in the US after a government agency found a flaw in its Autopilot system. The recall is the outcome of a two-year probe into Autopilot-related crashes.
The recalled vehicles, spanning almost all
Tesla models sold since 2015 with Autopilot, will receive an over-the-air software update to fix the defect, avoiding the need for physical dealership visits.
Although Autopilot assists with driving tasks, drivers are still required to remain engaged. The US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) identified concerns with the system's ability to monitor driver attentiveness.
Following its extensive investigation, which included evaluating 956 crashes,
Tesla agreed to the recall. The company acknowledged potential insufficiencies in preventing misuse of Autopilot.
The NHTSA emphasized the importance of responsible automated technology deployment for safety. They plan to continue supervision after the software update.
Concerns about
Tesla's technology were echoed by former employee Lukasz Krupski, who questioned the system's safety to the BBC.
Tesla faced its second recall this year and recently defended Autopilot's safety record on X (formerly Twitter), highlighting statistics pointing to fewer crashes when Autopilot is active, advocating for increased automation.
The BBC sought comments from
Tesla regarding the recall.