Tesla’s partial self-driving autopilot feature has been thrust under the microscope in recent days after reports of two crashes involving the autos on American highways.
A crash in May killed the driver of a Tesla Model S sedan in Florida, prompting an investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Another crash in Pennsylvania that did not cause any fatalities occurred on July 1.
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Tesla’s beta-phase autopilot system is the focus of the investigation in the crash that occurred in May, even though Tesla has continued to remind people that the autopilot feature is still only an aid to driving. People still need to keep their minds on the road and their hands on the steering wheel.
While Tesla gained European approval of the autopilot system in the Netherlands, the company really needs to get approval from the KBA because Germany is Europe’s biggest car market.
“If the word beta-phase means an incomplete status of the software, the KBA would not authorize (such) a functionality,” the newspaper quoted the KBA as saying, according to Fortune.
So what is a “beta” version? The word is used to describe a product, such as a video game or in this case, an autopilot system, that has moved to being functionally ready but still requires improvements before it is deemed to be fully usable. In other words, it is still being tested, but by the consumer.
Reuters is reporting that on Friday, Tesla said that it is cooperating with the KBA on the review of the autopilot components, after which the KBA will report to Germany’s Transport Ministry.
The agency denies it is investigating the Tesla for not sufficiently informing authorities, saying on its part that it is just “clarifying technical issues,” despite what Der Spiegel magazine reported on Saturday.
