U.S. opens probe into fatal Tesla crash, fire in California

A fatal crash and vehicle fire of a Tesla Inc Model X near Mountain View, California, last week has prompted a federal field investigation, the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board said on Tuesday, sparking a big selloff in Tesla stock. read more »

Arizona governor and Uber kept self-driving program secret, emails reveal

A cozy relationship with governor Doug Ducey enabled an autonomous program with limited expert oversight – one that ultimately led to a fatal crash

Arizona’s Republican governor repeatedly encouraged Uber’s controversial experiment with autonomous cars in the state, enabling a secret testing program for self-driving vehicles with limited oversight from experts, according to hundreds of emails obtained by the Guardian.

The previously unseen emails between Uber and the office of governor Doug Ducey reveal how Uber began quietly testing self-driving cars in Phoenix in August 2016 without informing the public. read more »

Uber, Tesla Crashes Prompt Rivals to Warn About Cutting Corners

As the global auto industry vies to deploy driverless cars, some contenders may be cutting corners in a bid to get ahead, carmakers warned in the aftermath of the first pedestrian death tied to the emerging technology.

“Some competitors, not by name because there are several, they’re trying to race to be the first one to show autonomous driving. I’m not so sure what being first gets you,” Jack Hollis, group vice president of U.S. sales for the Toyota brand, said on the sidelines of the New York International Auto Show. read more »

Death by robot: the new mechanized danger in our changing world

As the use of autonomous machines increases in society, so too has the chance of robot-related fatalities

Elaine Herzberg

Was killed last Sunday by an Uber autonomous car that hit the 49-year-old at approximately 40mph as she was crossing the road in Tempe, Arizona. Police confirmed there was an operator in the Volvo SUV at the time of the collision, and stated that it didn’t appear the car had slowed down.

Robert Williams

Cited as the first human killed by a robot, Williams was an assembly worker at Ford’s Flat Rock plant in Michigan. He was crushed to death by the arm of a one-tonne robot on the production line on 25 January 1979. His family was awarded $10m in damages. The court concluded that he was struck on the head due to inadequate safety measures.

Surgery patients

While robot-assisted surgery has allowed surgeons to perform operations remotely with minimal invasiveness, a 2016 US study found that it was linked to the deaths of 144 people between 2008 and 2013. Causes of death included parts falling into patients’ bodies, machines turning off/on at the wrong time and loss of video feeds. “Despite widespread adoption of robotic systems… a non-negligible number of technical difficulties and complications are still being experienced during procedures,” the study said. read more »