'Thats where the danger lies': Uber's former self-driving car boss sounds safety alarm after near-death Tesla experience as Cybertruck crash sparks fresh controversy

Date:
Fri, 20 Mar 2026 01:00:00 +0000

Description:
Ubers former head of self-driving critiques Tesla's Full Self-Driving system following crash.

FULL STORY ======================================================================Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Threads Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Tech Radar Get the TechRadar Newsletter Sign up for
breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more. Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Receive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over. You are
now subscribed Your newsletter sign-up was successful An account already exists for this email address, please log in. Subscribe to our newsletter Teslas Full Self-Driving systems have come under scrutiny again Ubers former head of self-driving crashes Model X using FSD A Cybertruck also violently crashed into an overpass barrier Two recent high-profile Tesla crashes have once again shone the spotlight on the companys Full Self-Driving (FSD) technology . They highlight the issue with asking humans to supervise systems designed to make supervision feel pointless, as Ubers former head of self-driving cars wrote in an article for The Atlantic after his Model X crashed into a wall.

Raffi Krikorian, the Mozilla CTO and former Uber self-driving boss, said he was navigating the residential streets of San Franciscos Bay Area with his Model X set to Full Self-Driving mode, when the steering wheel jerked one
way, then the other. Moments before colliding with a wall, Krikorian says he turned the wheel to take over, but it was too late. Article continues below You may like Teslas Robotaxis are crashing four times more than human drivers Tesla will no longer sell customers Supervised full self-Driving as a one-off payment option Tesla kills the Model S and Model X as EV pioneer pivots into robotics

In a similar but altogether much scarier scenario, dash cam footage captured by Justine Saint Amours Cybertruck reveals the moments just before the
vehicle careered into an overpass barrier at speed, almost sending it over
the edge and potentially killing the driver and her one-year-old child. 'TERRIFYING': Dashcam video shows the moment a Tesla Cybertruck, allegedly operating in self-driving mode, nearly sent a Houston mom and her infant off
a bridge before violently crashing into an overpass barrier.The woman claims she suffered multiple injuries from the incident pic.twitter.com/DgcnHp2FtZ March 17, 2026 Saint Amour says the vehicle was in Full Self-Driving mode before the incident, but her attorney Bob Hilliard acknowledged that his client disengaged the system moments before impact. Teslas CEO, Elon Musk, immediately picked up on this fact.

He took to X to write : Logs show driver disengaged Autopilot four seconds before crashing an argument he has used in FSD's defence a number of times before.

But Raffi Krikorian, who used to run Ubers self-driving car division, argues in his article that drivers need "five to eight seconds to mentally reengage after an automated driving system gives control back. In his opinion, this middle ground simply doesnt work. Get daily insight, inspiration and deals in your inbox Sign up for breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more. Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Receive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

"A machine that constantly fails keeps you sharp. A machine that works perfectly needs no oversight. But a machine that works almost perfectly?
Thats where the danger lies, he writes.

Saint Amour suffered two herniated discs in her lower back, one in her neck, sprained tendons in her wrist, and experienced numbness and weakness in her right hand, according to Electrek , and is suing Tesla for over $1m as a result. Analysis: Teslas messaging has long been misleading (Image credit: Tesla) Tesla may have stopped referring to its advanced cruise control system as Autopilot, but that hasnt prevented the company from pursuing and
promoting its Full Self-Driving technology. What to read next Elon Musk implores you not to buy a Tesla Roadster if safety is important Tesla-style concealed door handles have been banned in China here's why Airbnb may have confirmed Apples self-driving car

Despite adding Supervised to proceedings, Elon Musk has long peddled the myth that his technology is more capable than it actually is.

He has made claims a Tesla should be able to autonomous drive 90 per cent of miles way back in 2013 , as well as stating that drivers could soon go to sleep in your car and wake up in your destination on multiple occasions, with the most recent being the end of last year .

The mounting number of court cases and high profile crashes are testament to the fact that we are still a long way from that point, and despite Teslas website warning Full Self-Driving users not to become complacent, customers are clearly placing more trust in the systems than they should.

As Raffi Krikorian writes: when a cars marketing says self-driving but the fine print says driver responsible, thats a warning sign". Follow TechRadar
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Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/vehicle-tech/hybrid-electric-vehicles/thats-where-th e-danger-lies-ubers-former-self-driving-car-boss-sounds-safety-alarm-after-nea r-death-tesla-experience-as-cybertruck-crash-sparks-fresh-controversy


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