#167-Tesla FSD beta

Autonomous Cars with Marc Hoag

So this is a big, hugely polarizing deal: Tesla has just unleashed the beta version of its so-called “full self-driving” or “FSD” for short.

Released only to an extremely small, but unknown number of so-called “early adopter program” (“EAP”) customers, this software update — 2020.40.8.10 — unleashes the full suite of long promised “self driving” features in an admittedly risky package; so risky, in fact, that the release notes warn that “[i]t may do the wrong thing at the worst time.”

And the Internet has lost its collective minds: on one side of the ever-widening rift are the usual Tesla fanatics praising Elon for this extraordinary (non-?)achievement; on the other are naysayers criticizing him for his blatant ambivalence for, and risk with, human safety.

I argue several points:

First, the data needs to speak: if in fact this proves to be safe, then it should be continue.

Second, we need to do anything we can — yes, even take more risks — if it means reducing the number of people killed every day.