What We’re Reading
Tesla must face vehicle owners’ lawsuit over self-driving claims (Reuters, May 15, 2024)
A U.S. judge rejected Tesla’s request to dismiss a lawsuit alleging the company misled owners about their vehicles' self-driving capabilities. The class action claims that since 2016, Tesla and Elon Musk falsely advertised Autopilot and self-driving technology as functional or imminent, prompting higher vehicle payments. U.S. District Judge Rita Lin allowed fraud-based claims related to hardware capabilities, stating Tesla’s representations could be considered false if implying readiness for high automation. Some claims were dismissed, and neither Tesla nor the plaintiffs’ lawyers commented. The lawsuit, led by Thomas LoSavio, seeks damages for buyers of Tesla vehicles with self-driving features since 2016. The case is In re Tesla Advanced Driver Assistance Systems Litigation, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, No. 22-05240.
UK’s autonomous vehicle legislation becomes law, paving the way for first driverless cars by 2026 (Tech Crunch, May 20, 2024)
The Automated Vehicles (AV) Act has just passed, putting the U.K. at the forefront of self-driving technology regulations. The U.K. has allowed driverless cars on roads for many years, with strict rules in place for companies to test new technologies. With the advancement of the autonomous vehicle industry, the new legislation is expected to improve road safety by reducing human error. The new legislation also addresses liability in the event of a crash, which will make the corporations responsible instead of humans, if the car is in self-driving mode.
Volvo teams up with Aurora to reveal an autonomous semi truck (The Verge, May 20, 2024)
Volvo has unveiled its first “production-ready” self-driving truck developed in collaboration with Aurora, an autonomous driving technology company. This truck, based on Volvo's Class 8 VNL semi-truck, is equipped with sensors and cameras for Aurora’s Level 4 autonomous driving system, allowing driverless operation. Nils Jaeger, president of Volvo Autonomous Solutions, emphasizes the truck's design for scalability to other models and regions. Production will occur at Volvo’s New River Valley plant in Virginia.
Volvo, producing 10% of global Class 8 trucks, began its partnership with Aurora in 2018, accruing 1.5 million miles in tests. Aurora aims to deploy 20 autonomous trucks in 2023, expanding to 100 by 2025 and scaling up by 2027 with German auto supplier Continental. Despite setbacks in the industry, including some companies folding and others delaying deployment, Volvo and Aurora remain committed to advancing autonomous truck technology.