NEW DATA

WaPo Report Reveals High Number of Crashes Involving Self-Driving Teslas

Experts told The Washington Post that decisions made by Tesla CEO Elon Musk may have contributed to a spike in crashes.

The number of accidents—and fatal crashes—involving Tesla cars’ self-driving technology is much higher than previously known, according to a new investigation from The Washington Post. The paper reported that, since 2019, Tesla vehicles in autopilot have been involved in 736 crashes and at least 17 fatal crashes, including 11 since last May. Experts told the Post that decisions by Tesla CEO Elon Musk to expand the deployment of self-driving tech and reduce vehicles’ radar likely caused the spike. Musk has brushed off concerns about dangers posed by the technology, arguing the benefits outweigh any risks. “I think you have a moral obligation to deploy it even though you’re going to get sued and blamed by a lot of people,” he said last year.