Tesla is planning a major Autopilot update following fatal crash

[Wireless News]

Tesla continues to change the game, pushing the auto industry away from unsustainable gas-powered tech faster than we ever would have seen otherwise. But it's not just the general electric vehicle market where Tesla is a leader. Elon Musk's EV giant is also at the forefront of exciting new technologies including autonomous driving. Though the company's fast-paced-software updates are adored by fans and the tech media, Tesla has also been scrutinized for using its end user base as a mass beta test, so to speak. Those criticisms boiled over recently when Tesla confirmed that its Autopilot software was active at the time of a fatal crash in Florida. Now, the company is reportedly prepping a major update to its Autopilot software following that widely publicized crash. DON'T MISS:- 5 ways the-iPhone is-still better than Android after all these years Tesla's electric cars managed to log 130 million miles without a fatal accident while Autopilot was enabled before the streak finally came to an abrupt and tragic-end. Earlier this year, former Navy SEAL Joshua Brown was traveling at high speeds on a highway with Autopilot enabled in his Model S when the car struck a tractor-trailer, killing Brown on impact. According to Tesla and the police report, the tractor-trailer was pulling out across the highway to make a left turn when the Model S struck the trailer at windshield level. Tesla noted that the car's Autopilot system could not detect the white trailer against the glare of a sunny sky. The driver was seemingly not paying attention to the road while Autopilot was enabled; according to the driver of the tractor-trailer — who was obeying traffic laws at the time of the incident and was not issued any summonses — Brown was watching a Harry Potter movie at the time of the accident . As we noted in an earlier report, Tesla is currently testing a major software update for the Model S that will be released soon. The version 8.0 update includes plenty of new features that you can read about here , and now-a new report adds some more detail ahead of the new software's release. In light of the recent fatal accident Electrek reports that Tesla's Autopilot software is set to receive a major update in the version 8.0 release. Tesla is currently beta testing the software with some Model S owners, and it's calling this new software "the most important to its touchscreen since the launch of the Model S in 2012." According to the report, version 8.0 of Tesla's software will include general improvements to Autopilot performance in traffic. It will also introduce a new feature that lets Autopilot automatically navigate off-ramps in order to exit a-highway. Of note, none of the enhancements coming in version 8.0 would have prevented Brown's fatal crash. The report also notes that Tesla has an entirely new-"Autopilot 2.0" experience in the works that employs a "new sensor suite on which Tesla can release more advanced autonomous and semi-autonomous features." There is currently no word on when the revamped system might find its way to vehicles.

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