Why is the United States interrogating Tesla because of its entertainment system?

What is happening between Tesla and the US government? Article by Carlo Terzano.

It's certainly no surprise that Tesla collects a lot of data just by getting into its super-smart cars. However, this data can now be used to the disadvantage of one person: the government agency NHTSA, which stands for NHTSA National Highway Traffic Safety Administrationwhich has been investigating the entertainment system installed on 2017-2022 Tesla Model 3, S,

What does the Tesla infotainment system consist of?

What ended up under the magnifying glass of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the federal authority responsible for road safety, is the “Passenger Play” function that Tesla itself advertised as an on-board control unit, accessible directly from the front of the car. Passenger compartment. . It has yet to be clarified whether the driver, given the size of the screen on the dashboard, could somehow be distracted by the sounds and images occurring under his nose while passengers are playing video games. Right now, NHTSA wants to check something else, which is whether there are instances where the same driver used Tesla's infotainment system.

Malandrino December update

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's investigation was triggered by a December car firmware update that would have unlocked Tesla's entertainment system even while the car was in motion. The goal was clearly to entertain passengers, but the position of the windshield would also allow the driver to do so Play a game on the goThis puts your safety and the safety of other motorists and pedestrians at serious risk. It seems that Tesla warned of the risks with a disclaimer and subjected the use of the entertainment system to passengers only, but clicking on the touch screen was enough to start video games. Once the NHTSA began its investigation, Tesla released a new update that once again prevents the use of video games while the car is in motion.

Will the data tell you what happened?

This is where all the data collected by Tesla comes into play, which can be used as “black boxes” to shed light on whether there are episodes of this type. The federal authority asked Tesla to provide it by March 4 with information collected about “trips in which video game use occurred while the devices indicated that the car was running” as well as information about the use of games in moments “and the sensors in the car did not detect the presence of a passenger in the car.” Front passenger seat. The agency also requested data on when “video game use occurred in conjunction with any driver intervention measure or other active safety measure.”

Tesla is also flying in 2021

It won't worry you much elon musk, No. 1 in the group, which will travel to Berlin at the beginning of February to accelerate the opening of the first gigafactory on European soil. Tesla's business has not fared well at all, despite Covid and the chip shortage: Net profit rose to $5.5 billion on revenue of $53.8 billion, a notable increase from last year when sales were $31.5 billion and profits were $721 million. The fourth quarter was also positive, closing well above analysts' expectations. Deliveries increased by 87% to 936 thousand cars. Analysts estimate that Tesla could deliver 1.5 million vehicles this year, in line with its goal of increasing deliveries by 50% annually for an extended period. This is a goal that new factories in Germany and Texas play a crucial role in achieving, for which Tesla has allocated more than $6 billion.