2024-05-02T12:11:22-04:00 https://archinect.com/news/article/149955408/tesla-model-s-driver-suffers-fatal-crash-while-using-autopilot-in-first-known-death-involving-an-autonomous-vehicle Amelia Taylor-Hochberg 2016-07-01T13:37:00-04:00 >2018-01-30T06:16:04-05:00 <img src="https://archinect.gumlet.io/uploads/49/49qitvd0n0np9cjv.jpg?fit=crop&auto=compress%2Cformat&enlarge=true&w=1200" border="0" /><p>On May 7, 2016, Joshua Brown, 40, of Williston, Florida was heading down the highway in his Tesla Model S, using the car&rsquo;s autopilot mode, when he fatally collided with a tractor trailer. The truck took a left-turn in front of his vehicle, and according to a <a href="https://www.teslamotors.com/blog/tragic-loss" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">news release</a> issued by Tesla, &ldquo;Neither autopilot nor the driver noticed the white side of the tractor-trailer against a brightly lit sky, so the brake was not applied.&rdquo;</p><p>A Navy veteran and owner of a technology consulting firm, Brown had used the autopilot mode before, even going so far as to record videos of himself riding in the car under its guidance.</p><p></p><p>The tragic death is also a historic one, as the first known fatality involving an autonomous vehicle. Federal regulators have opened up an investigation into Brown&rsquo;s death at a time when <a href="http://archinect.com/news/article/149942771/google-uber-lyft-ford-and-volvo-join-forces-to-lobby-for-autonomous-vehicles" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">car companies, technology firms, and legislators</a> are all scrambling towards the seemingly inevitable future of ubiquitous autonomous vehicles.</p><p>Tesla maintains that their autopilot mode is still very...</p>