The Dawn Project has yesterday launched a full page advertisement in The New York Times highlighting the dangers of Tesla Full Self-Driving after safety tests reveal that it will repeatedly run down child-sized mannequins in its path.
The ad reports that safety tests conducted by The Dawn Project reveal that Elon Musk’s Full Self-Driving software would repeatedly run down child-sized mannequins in its path.
The safety tests were conducted in Goleta, California in October 2022 using the latest version of Tesla Full Self-Driving (FSD) Beta software available at the time of testing, FSD Beta 10.69.2.2.
The tests were conducted in dry conditions in both daylight and dusk conditions on a public road in Goleta, CA, where the posted speed limit was 55mph. On each run, the driver shows the internal camera the FSD’s display to show the viewer that FSD is clearly engaged, together with which settings the Tesla is operating. A full video of The Dawn Project’s safety tests can be found here.
A mannequin was placed on the side of the road and pulled across the road to simulate a child crossing the road, in order to make the scenario as realistic as possible. The mannequins used were 29 inches and four feet in height respectively.
The Dawn Project conducted the safety tests using moving mannequins, as well as testing at a variety of speeds between 15mph and 55mph to determine the ability of Tesla’s Full Self-Driving to avoid a child-sized mannequin in the road.
During the fifteen runs, the Tesla collided with the mannequin crossing its path on each occasion. Even at speeds as low as 15mph, Tesla Full Self-Driving Beta 10.69.2.2 collided with the 29-inch mannequin. At 20mph, the Tesla still struck the 4-foot mannequin.
The Dawn Project is demanding that NHTSA issue an emergency recall of Tesla’s Full Self-Driving software to ensure that road users and pedestrians are protected from the dangers posed by the mass deployment of this technology on public roads.
Dan O’Dowd is an entrepreneur and CEO with over 40 years’ experience in designing and writing secure, safety-critical software. Dan has built operating systems for the U.S. military’s fighter jets and some of the world’s most trusted organizations such as NASA, Boeing, and Airbus. His company, Green Hills Software, also helps automotive companies achieve safety and security, including that necessary for production-level automated driving systems, offering operating systems and development tools designed to address software security threats.
Now, Dan’s safety advocacy and research organization, The Dawn Project, is campaigning to ban dangerous and defective technology from public roads and protect our communities.
In 2021 Dan O’Dowd founded The Dawn Project, which campaigns to ensure all software in safety-critical infrastructure is secure and to make computers safe for humanity. The first danger The Dawn Project is tackling is Elon Musk’s reckless deployment of unsafe Full Self-Driving cars on our roads.