Tesla Unveils Comprehensive Safety Report Following Waymo Co-CEO’s Data Request
Tesla has released a comprehensive safety report detailing the performance of its Full Self-Driving (FSD) software. This announcement comes shortly after Waymo’s co-CEO, Tekedra Mawakana, emphasized the need for transparency in safety data at the TechCrunch Disrupt conference.
Tesla’s Safety Performance Highlights
According to the new information on Tesla’s website, drivers utilizing the FSD (Supervised) software in North America drive approximately:
- 5 million miles before experiencing a major collision.
- 1.5 million miles before encountering a minor collision.
In contrast, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) statistics indicate that the average American experiences a major collision every 699,000 miles and a minor one every 229,000 miles. Tesla interprets these figures to demonstrate a significantly lower collision rate for its FSD users compared to the national average.
Comparison with National Averages
The statistics unveil a striking difference between Tesla’s reported data and NHTSA’s figures:
- FSD users reportedly travel about 2.9 million miles between major collisions, while the average for all drivers is about 505,000 miles.
- For minor collisions, FSD users drive approximately 986,000 miles compared to 178,000 miles for all drivers.
Clarifications and Definitions
This report marks a pivotal shift in how Tesla defines key collision metrics. The company utilizes the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards to categorize:
- Major collisions: Incidents where airbags or other pyrotechnic restraints deploy.
- Minor collisions: Less severe incidents not meeting the criteria for major collisions.
Tesla includes any collision where FSD was active within five seconds prior to the event in its dataset. This approach aims to provide a comprehensive context for the data presented.
Future Updates and Data Collection
Moving forward, Tesla plans to update this safety data quarterly, reflecting a rolling twelve-month aggregation of miles and collisions. However, the company will not disclose injury rates, stating it collects data automatically from the vehicles. Instead, focus remains on metrics such as collision frequency and airbag deployment rates, which serve as indicators of collision severity.
In summary, Tesla’s decision to publish this detailed safety report follows industry calls for transparency, particularly regarding advancements in self-driving technology. As the landscape of autonomous vehicles continues to evolve, ongoing scrutiny and data sharing will be essential in assessing safety performance.
