A New York Times/FX documentary focuses on the deadly disconnect between the Tesla CEO’s promises for Autopilot self-driving tech and its capability
Subsequent investigations concluded that Autopilot – which at the time relied on cameras and radar but not Lidar, the system of light detection and ranging used by most other manufacturers – couldn’t differentiate between perpendicular trucks and overhead bridges. Brown’s Tesla mistook one for the other and didn’t brake, causing his death.
Three of Brown’s friends testify in the film to his enthusiasm for incipient technology and new gadgets; he wanted to be on the cutting edge of technology. The film argues that an extrapolation of that worldview at large – the belief that technology can shift global paradigms, that wildly ambitious vision can achieve seemingly impossible ends – undergirds Tesla and Musk’s approach to the controversy, which is: double down on the mission.
“Elon Musk has a very specific way of motivating people,” JT Stukes, a former Tesla project engineer, says in the film. “He would say really cool things, science fiction things, and he would make you believe that you could do it.
There’s a brief section on the intense fandom Musk cultivates: snapshots of his tweets and a clip from his 2018 interview with divisive podcaster Joe Rogan act as signal flares to the online Musk skeptics, but there is no mention of his ex-wives, celebrity dating life or, you know, his. The film is less analysis of Musk’s celebrity than deep dive into one troubling aspect of his career, a reminder of longstanding issues with his leadership.
We have not arrived at the horizon of fully self-driving cars; we may not for several more years or, as Boudette proposes, perhaps even decades. Elon Musk’s Crash Course is not so much concerned with the heyday of autonomous vehicles as the information we have now – a counterbalance to Musk’s wild visions for the future through a sobering, tightly edited capsule of his spotty record in the present.
Australia Latest News, Australia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Why Elon Musk and Twitter CEO are sparring over botsElon Musk says fake users make up at least 20 per cent of all Twitter accounts, possibly as high as 90 per cent. Twitter disagrees.
Read more »
Elon Musk considers paying less for Twitter as fake account doubts growAfter putting his takeover deal on hold, the Tesla CEO says the social media giant is underestimating the number of fake accounts on the platform so he 'can't pay the same price'.
Read more »
Elon Musk needs an exit from his ill-timed Twitter bidYou don’t have to look hard for the reason for ElonMusk’s decision to put his $64 billion bid for Twitter “temporarily on hold.” A check on two share prices would do the trick. | OPINION
Read more »
Elon Musk needs an exit from his ill-timed Twitter bidYou don’t have to look hard for the reason for Elon Musk’s decision to put his $US44 billion bid for Twitter “temporarily on hold.” A check on two share prices would do the trick.
Read more »
Elon Musk needs an exit from his ill-timed Twitter bidYou don’t have to look hard for the reason for Elon Musk’s decision to put his $US44 billion bid for Twitter “temporarily on hold.” A check on two share prices would do the trick.
Read more »
Elon Musk seen by market pros winning Twitter at lower priceMost investors and merger specialists expect the transaction to proceed, though at a discount to Elon Musk’s original $US54.20 a share offer.
Read more »