Thread by @Tweetermeyer

We don't know exactly what happened in the fatal crash that killed a Tesla driver yesterday, and we don't know if any driving automation was involved. This is a thread about what we do know, some of which suggests it may be another in a growing string of Autopilot-involved deaths

The initial reporting on the crash is here: losangeles.cbslocal.com/2021/05/05/tes…

Today, the @sbcountysheriff released the name of the deceased: Steven Hendrickson, a 35 year-old male: wp.sbcounty.gov/sheriff/media-…

I've found what appear to be his social media pages, and there are troubling posts.

The most troubling posts are on what appears to be his TikTok account. The posts show him using his Tesla's driving automation in traffic, describing it as "FSD" and "selfdriving," and describing his state has "tired" and "bored"

tiktok.com/@shendrickson2…

tiktok.com/@shendrickson2…

I have to be super clear about this: while the username, posts, style and other factors suggest that the accounts I have found are all the same person, I have not definitively confirmed it. Again, we also don't know if Autopilot or FSD were active in the crash.

The reason these TikToks are so troubling is that they seem to show that he thought Tesla's driving automation is actually "self driving" and that it would keep him safe when he was "bored" and "tired." The driver must be alert and engaged at all times when using these systems.

I am told by someone who has more hands-on experience with the details of Tesla's UI/visualization and driving automation that it appears he does not have the "FSD Beta" that is now active for limited users. Again, I have not completely confirmed this.

If he did not have "Full Self-Driving Beta" access, this suggests that he thought his Tesla was "self driving" regardless. That is deeply worrying, because it suggests that owners are fundamentally confused by the capabilities of Tesla's various systems... with fatal results.

This video is from the only EV-related Youtube channel that an account that appears to be Hendrickson's subscribed to. In it, an influencer raves about FSD and says her car is "safer than her," even though she doesn't have FSD Beta access.

I have no idea if Hendrickson watched that video. I have no idea if it influenced his belief that his car was self-driving. I don't even know for sure that he did believe that. But it shows that some people don't understand what FSD is and how it differs from what their car has.

If this pattern is what it appears to me to be, it shows that #autonowashing happens in more fundamental and dangerous ways than any of us who are concerned about it realized. You can read @lizadixon's paper defining autonowashing here: sciencedirect.com/science/articl…

We know from three fatalities investigated by @NTSB that Tesla's system is vulnerable to overtrust and misuse:

https://twitter.com/Tweetermeyer/status/1382468041523417089

We know from studies like this one that how these systems are described can encourage overtrust and misuse: foundation.org/impact-of-info…

The tragic irony is that: even if Hendrickson did have "FSD Beta" access, he still would need to have been actively monitoring it at all times. It's still a Level 2 system. But the messaging around the system may have contributed to his inattention and death either way.

I'm going to end this thread by saying once more: a lot of this is still unconfirmed. If I am presented with real evidence that I got key facts wrong, I will delete this whole thread and apologize. I'm fairly certain that I haven't, but it's a possibility. I wish I were wrong.

If I'm not wrong, these facts will confirm my deep suspicion that the design issues raised by @NTSB and the ubiquitous #autonowashing of Tesla and its influencer community are a real problem. We owe it to those who have died to recognize the problem and do something about it.