Testing and filming the safety of Tesla’s fully autonomous driving on its own children isn’t necessarily a good idea. Posting the video on YouTube is even less so.
A few weeks ago, Tesla’s fully autonomous driving system was accused of not being able to recognize children on the road in certain situations. Nonsense for Tad Park, owner of a Tesla Model 3 and investor with shares in Tesla. The individual wanted to prove on video that the accusations are unfounded, using own children as guinea pigs.
In a video posted on YouTube on August 14, he drives at around 13 km/h towards one of his children to prove that Tesla’s fully autonomous driving can detect the child and adapt the vehicle’s behavior in the purpose of avoiding any collision. The video racked up tens of thousands of views before being taken down by YouTube.
Don’t test Tesla’s self-driving on your kids (or anyone)
“YouTube does not allow content showing a minor engaging in dangerous activities or encouraging minors to do dangerous activities”explains a spokesperson for the video sharing platform. “Specifically, we don’t allow content that shows or encourages minors in dangerous situations that could lead to injury, including dangerous stunts, dares, or pranks”she says.
To defend itself, Tad Park provides “having taken many safety precautions so that children are never in danger”. According to him, the test took place in several stages, first with a dummy, then with a tall basketball player, and finally with a child standing and another child crossing the street. He promises that he was always driving at a very measured speed and could regain control at any time. “Even if the system completely failed, I was ready to take over. I knew where I was going to have to brake if the car didn’t slow down enough”he says.
In response to the video, NHTSA, the US federal highway safety agency, strongly advised users not to test vehicle technologies themselves. She recalls in passing “that no vehicle available for purchase today is capable of driving itself”.
Source : CNBC
