A federal agency responsible for road safety, investigating whether Tesla vehicles' autonomous driving technology played a role in pedestrian deaths, has fired a “slack” number of employees, an agency spokesman on Friday I stated late.
The agency did not say whether any of the fired employees were involved in the Tesla investigation. Tesla CEO Elon Musk leads the government's efficiency established by President Trump.
The efficiency sector is forcing a number of government agencies to layoffs as part of an effort to restructure the federal bureaucracy. Musk has been in control of Tesla while spending much of his time in Washington.
According to agency documents, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has conducted three active investigations of Tesla.
The layoffs for road safety agencies with fewer than 1,000 employees have been reported previously by the Washington Post. Even after the layoffs, the agency continues to employ more people than the start of the Biden administration, the agency said in a statement.
“The last administration has increased the NHTSA by a whopping 30%,” the agency said in a statement.
“We hold a key position on our mission to save lives, prevent injuries and reduce economic costs from road traffic accidents,” the agency said. “We will continue to enforce laws regarding all manufacturers of automobiles and equipment.”
Tesla did not respond to requests for comment.
One of the Tesla investigations is based on four accidents that have been overseen by the automaker, including what it calls fully autonomous driving technology. In one of the crashes, Tesla attacked and killed a pedestrian, according to agency documents. Another accident caused a person to be injured.
Tesla's autonomous driving technology relies on cameras to investigate the surroundings of cars, in contrast to competitors like Waymo, a unit from the same company as Google.
Road safety agencies are considering whether Tesla's technology failed when visibility was poor due to glare from the sun, fog or dust.
Musk has often argued that Tesla's autonomous driving technology is safer than human drivers.
This technology is also important for Tesla's future and stock price. Even as Tesla sales flagged, Musk will focus on autonomous driving technology and planning for autonomous taxis, even as the global electric vehicle market fell 1% last year, with the global electric vehicle market rising 25%. I've moved it.
The technology will help make Tesla the most valuable company in the world, Musk told investors last month.
