Tesla President’s Email Revealing Autopilot Risks Submitted as Evidence in High-Stakes Trial

A newly uncovered email from Tesla's president Jon McNeill, dated six weeks before the first fatal U.S. Autopilot accident in 2016, has become evidence in a California wrongful-death lawsuit. The email details McNeill's positive experience with Autopilot, noting he became so immersed in emails that he missed exits, raising questions about driver attention. The trial, scheduled for March 18, involves a fatal crash in March 2018. Plaintiffs argue Tesla knew drivers might not maintain focus. Tesla witnesses revealed the company did not study how quickly drivers could regain control before the 2018 accident, and waited until 2021 to implement a camera-based driver monitoring system. The lawsuit involves the death of Apple engineer Walter Huang; Tesla claims Huang was playing a video game. The case could set a precedent for other lawsuits. NHTSA is examining hundreds of crashes involving Autopilot, and a federal criminal probe is underway.

A newly uncovered email from Tesla's president Jon McNeill, dated six weeks before the first fatal U.S. Autopilot accident in 2016, has become evidence in a California wrongful-death lawsuit. The email details McNeill's positive experience with Autopilot, noting he became so immersed in emails that he missed exits, raising questions about driver attention. The trial, scheduled for March 18, involves a fatal crash in March 2018. Plaintiffs argue Tesla knew drivers might not maintain focus. Tesla witnesses revealed the company did not study how quickly drivers could regain control before the 2018 accident, and waited until 2021 to implement a camera-based driver monitoring system. The lawsuit involves the death of Apple engineer Walter Huang; Tesla claims Huang was playing a video game. The case could set a precedent for other lawsuits. NHTSA is examining hundreds of crashes involving Autopilot, and a federal criminal probe is underway.

A newly uncovered email from Tesla's president Jon McNeill, dated six weeks before the first fatal U.S. Autopilot accident in 2016, has become evidence in a California wrongful-death lawsuit. The email details McNeill's positive experience with Autopilot, noting he became so immersed in emails that he missed exits, raising questions about driver attention. The trial, scheduled for March 18, involves a fatal crash in March 2018. Plaintiffs argue Tesla knew drivers might not maintain focus. Tesla witnesses revealed the company did not study how quickly drivers could regain control before the 2018 accident, and waited until 2021 to implement a camera-based driver monitoring system. The lawsuit involves the death of Apple engineer Walter Huang; Tesla claims Huang was playing a video game. The case could set a precedent for other lawsuits. NHTSA is examining hundreds of crashes involving Autopilot, and a federal criminal probe is underway.

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