Written by Zoe Kleinman and Liv McMahonTechnology editor and reporter
BBCA former Tesla employee told the BBC he believes the technology powering the company’s self-driving cars is not safe enough to be used on public roads.
Lukasz Krupski leaked data, including customer complaints about Tesla’s braking and autonomous driving software, to German newspaper Handelsblatt in May.
He said that attempts to highlight his concerns internally were ignored.
Tesla did not respond to requests for comment.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk has defended its self-driving technology.
“Tesla has the best real-world AI ever,” Musk said. In a post on XTwitter previously, on Saturday.
But in his first interview in the UK, Krupski told the BBC’s technology editor, Zoe Kleinman, that he was concerned about how AI could be used – to power Tesla’s Autopilot service.
The Autopilot feature, for example, includes steering and parking assistance — but despite its name, it still requires someone in the driver’s seat with their hands on the wheel.
“I don’t think the hardware is ready and the software is ready,” he said.
“It affects all of us because we’re basically experiences on public roads. So, even if you don’t have a Tesla, your kids are still walking on the sidewalk.”
Krupsky said he found evidence in the company’s data that requirements regarding the safe operation of vehicles with a certain level of autonomous or driving-assistance technology were not being followed.
He added that even Tesla employees have talked to him about vehicles braking randomly in response to nonexistent obstacles — known as “phantom braking.” This was also shown in the data he obtained about customer complaints.
Krupski said he felt compelled to share what he found with data protection authorities.
The US Department of Justice has been investigating Tesla over its claims related to assisted driving features since January.
Tesla has also faced similar investigations and questions from agencies including the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration about its Autopilot system.
German newspaper Handelsblatt published the “Tesla Files” after Krupski shared 100 gigabytes of internal data he discovered.
The Data Protection Authority in the Netherlands, where Tesla is headquartered in Europe, confirmed to the BBC that it had been notified of the data breach and was looking into the allegation.
He barely sleeps
Krupski said the past six months and his experience with whistleblowing have been “terrifying.”
“I can barely sleep at night sometimes,” he told the BBC.
But his actions were recognized by others – he was awarded the Blueprint for Free Speech Whistleblowing Award.
Jack Stilgoe, an associate professor at University College London who researches autonomous vehicles, said Krupski’s claims raise broader concerns about the technology.
“This is kind of a case of testing AI out in the wild, on the open road, surrounded by all of us,” he said.
The UK government announced plans for a Motor Vehicles Bill to set out the legal framework for self-driving cars in the King’s Speech in early November.
Professor Stilgoe added: “We will have to see as the bill develops whether it deals with all the new things related to technology.”
