Tesla has made a milestone in its autonomous driving development, claiming to have achieved the world’s first fully driverless delivery. The company says it successfully delivered a Model Y without any human intervention from an Austin, Texas apartment building.
However, experts and critics are questioning this achievement due to a glaring oversight: Tesla’s vehicle stopped in front of a no-parking fire lane sign that reads “NO PARKING FIRE LANE.” It is unclear whether the car received special permission to park there or if it disregarded traffic laws.
This incident has sparked concerns about public safety, particularly since Tesla’s self-driving software has been subject to intense scrutiny. The automaker had never demonstrated its capability of deploying a fully autonomous driving system until now.
The company’s robotaxi service has also faced criticism for its lack of reliability, with footage showing the vehicles committing errors such as slamming brakes, nearly rear-ending trucks, and dropping off passengers in wrong locations.
Tesla is at odds with Waymo, another leader in self-driving technology, which claims to have been testing fully autonomous cars on highways since 2024. Musk’s claim of achieving the world’s first driverless delivery may be disputed, but the incident has raised questions about Tesla’s commitment to public safety and transparency.
As regulatory scrutiny continues, it remains to be seen how this will affect Tesla’s reputation and its ongoing robotaxi program.
Source: https://futurism.com/first-tesla-drives-autonomously-embarrassing-flub