Since Tesla released Version 8.0 of its Autopilot system this winter, CEO Elon Musk has touted its lifesaving potential. Today, dashcam footage from the Netherlands showed just how powerful the new safety feature can be.
In the video, the Tesla can be heard warning of a potential collision due an (unseen) breaking vehicle one car ahead. The Autopilot then hits the brakes — while the middle vehicle zooms forward and causes a wreck.
@elonmusk Finally the right one. pic.twitter.com/2fspGMUoWf
— Hans Noordsij (@HansNoordsij) December 27, 2016
Thankfully, no one was seriously harmed in the crash according to Hans Noordsij, the Twitter user who uploaded the video with the driver’s permission. Noordsij also confirmed it was the Autopilot that initially applied the emergency brake before the driver was able to react and brake herself.
By using radar detection in concert with visual sensors, Musk claimed in September that the software update enabled Teslas to “see” through vehicles travelling immediately in front of them. In this case, however, the Autopilot seems less like X-ray vision and more like straight-up clairvoyance.