Yahoo Finance Sec. Pete Buttigieg to Tesla Full Self-Driving fans: Keep your hands on the wheel
U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg has a message to autonomous driving fans, many of whom are Tesla (TSLA) owners: Keep your hands on the wheel.
"There is enormous safety potential in the future of some of these automated driving technologies," Buttigieg said on Yahoo Finance Live (video above). "But any technology that's on the market today is something that is designed to supplement — not replace — your attention as a safe driver. And I am very concerned about any scenario where any driver thinks otherwise."
Buttigieg's message to drivers is well-timed. Tesla said Thursday it is recalling "certain" vehicles that feature Full Self-Driving Beta software, including 2016-2023 Model S and Model X, 2017-2023 Model 3, and 2020-2023 Model Y EVs.
The recall will impact 362,758 vehicles. Tesla stock fell slightly on the news.
Tesla officially began offering full self-driving software to owners in late 2022 after having it in Beta mode for about a year. The EV maker is among the likes of Mercedes (MBG.DE) and General Motors (GM) in pushing aggressively for autonomous driving technology.
The industry's foray into such tech is being closely scrutinized by regulators, as it should be, given safety concerns.
There were nearly 400 crashes in the U.S. over 10 months from July 2021 through May 2022 involving self-driving technology, per findings from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).
"We are a long way off from automated vehicles, where you can sit back, take a nap, or read the paper while it takes you from point A to point B," Buttigieg added.
Buttigieg also discussed Tesla's new approach to sharing its superchargers with rival EVs. For more on that, be sure to watch the full interview below:
Brian Sozzi is Yahoo Finance's Executive Editor. Follow Sozzi on Twitter @BrianSozzi and on LinkedIn.
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