We start with the Tesla courtcase, revealing the company's attempts to withhold crucial autopilot crash data. The discussion expands to Tesla's hazardous software designs and Elon Musk's outrageous claims about future features. Additionally, topics cover the rising issue of sexual misconduct in ride-sharing services, the shocking inefficacy of autonomous vehicles in improving safety, and sobering comparisons of annual road deaths to historical tragedies. Finally, a rundown of the latest car recalls rounds out the intense conversation on auto safety and corporate ethics.

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Links:

• https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2025/08/01/tesla-found-partially-liable-fatal-2019-crash-involving-driver-assistance-technology-jury-orders-200-million-damages/
• https://electrek.co/2025/08/04/tesla-withheld-data-lied-misdirected-police-plaintiffs-avoid-blame-autopilot-crash/
• https://www.politico.com/news/2025/07/30/tesla-robotaxi-permit-problems-california-00486269
• https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/aug/05/elon-musk-lawsuit-robotaxi-tesla
• https://www.teslarati.com/tesla-ceo-elon-musk-reveals-ideal-timeline-for-insane-self-driving-feature/
• https://www.nytimes.com/2025/08/06/business/uber-sexual-assault.html
• https://www.msn.com/en-us/autos/electric-cars/a-steep-mountain-drive-a-brake-failure-and-a-volvo-recall/ar-AA1JOlGl
• https://www.jalopnik.com/1927423/helsinki-hasnt-had-single-road-death-entire-year/
• https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2025/RCLRPT-25V488-4203.pdf
• https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2025/RCLRPT-25V489-2722.pdf
• https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2025/RCLRPT-25V493-1196.pdf
• https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2025/RCLRPT-25V494-5788.pdf

The EPA is trying to eliminate itself, more on Tesla in Austin and SF with a special shout-out to the bootlickers at Munro. Congressman Fong is Wrong when it comes to AV safety. Ford is still trying to improve safety and Toronto is considering making the roads more dangerous for cyclists. That and more.

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This weeks links:

• https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2025/07/29/epa-endangerment-finding-clean-air-act/
• https://saferoads.org/july-2025-acmv-av-bills/
• https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/26/world/canada/bike-lanes-toronto.html
• https://nyc.streetsblog.org/2025/07/28/six-inane-arguments-eric-adams-is-using-to-defend-ripping-up-the-bedford-ave-bike-lane
• https://electrek.co/2025/07/25/tesla-launch-robotaxi-bay-area-but-with-someone-drivers-seat/
• https://junkoyoshidaparis.substack.com/p/teslas-robotaxi-checks-all-boxes
• https://electrek.co/2025/07/26/a-chinese-real-world-self-driving-test-36-cars-216-crashes-with-tesla-on-top/
• https://www.wsbtv.com/news/local/atlanta/different-rules-humans-robots-apd-says-court-system-cannot-process-citations-waymo/ZITFHSMJCVDHPIPDXSRW46ALRU/
• https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2025/RCLRPT-25V472-6161.pdf
• https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2025/RCLRPT-25V474-6532.pdf
• https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2025/RCLRPT-25V478-7150.pdf
• https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2025/RCLRPT-25V484-7729.pdf
• https://www.antenna-theory.com/basics/main.php

California looks to suspend Tesla sales and a trial in Florida looks to suspend their danger. The CEO of Waymo says she loves to roller-skate so Waymo's are safe for pedestrians, Volvo has some infotainment issues, Ford has problematic fuel injectors and NHTSA's small staff becomes even smaller.

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This weeks links:

• https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2025/07/22/tesla-california-dmv-autopilot/
• https://arstechnica.com/cars/2025/07/experts-lay-into-tesla-safety-in-federal-autopilot-trial/
• https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/tesla-fights-two-court-battles-over-claims-it-misled-consumers-about-automated-driving/ar-AA1J3DFe
• https://fortune.com/2025/07/20/elon-musk-tesla-robotaxi-service-austin-scaling-earnings-car-sales/
• https://www.reuters.com/business/world-at-work/us-auto-safety-agency-shedding-more-than-25-employees-2025-07-17/
• https://www.cleveland.com/news/2025/07/sen-moreno-calls-anti-drunk-driving-tech-insane-regulation-at-capitol-hill-hearing.html
• https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/other/automakers-still-need-to-crash-test-cars-despite-advances-in-ai/ar-AA1J3OsR
• https://www.azfamily.com/2025/07/18/recalled-without-repairs-why-some-drivers-still-cant-get-dangerous-takata-airbags-fixed/
• https://www.nhtsa.gov/press-releases/volvo-recall-urgent-brake-failure-warning-select-vehicles
• https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2025/RCLRPT-25V467-3548.pdf
• https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2025/RCLRPT-25V463-9046.pdf

Traffic fatalities have seen a notable decline, with the first quarter of 2023 recording the lowest rate in six years. Cars keep getting bigger blindsports, auto engineers do not want to do normative safety requirements and Ford wins the recall prize. And HSBC validates Anthony's robotaxi suspicion.

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This weeks links:

• https://www.nhtsa.gov/press-releases/traffic-fatalities-decreased-first-quarter-2025
• https://www.iihs.org/news/detail/poor-mental-health-police-cuts-fueled-pandemic-spike-in-impaired-driving-deaths
• https://www.fastcompany.com/91363061/driver-blind-spots-are-getting-bigger-blame-new-car-design
• https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/companies/us-auto-safety-nominee-calls-for-active-oversight-of-self-driving-cars/ar-AA1IFp79
• https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/behind-the-bipartisan-push-for-female-crash-test-dummies/ar-AA1IA3HD
• https://arxiv.org/pdf/2505.09880
• https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/companies/ford-breaks-annual-record-for-safety-recalls-within-first-six-months-of-year/ar-AA1Ip8ik
• https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2025/RCLRPT-25V455-7716.pdf
• https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2025/RCLRPT-25V454-3682.pdf
• https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/inv/2025/INOA-RQ25004-15762.pdf

Fred's back and shares his tales of safety from Germany. NHTSA has some hearings and will probably roll over for industry demands instead of safety needs. Waymo doors a cyclists, Tesla is probably not full autonomous with it's robo-taxi's and recalls.

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This weeks links:

• https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/67ee2ad971d86c70d02ed03f/683802d318db2c77d4ce3d43_2025_StateOfAV_AnnualReport_Web.pdf
• https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jul/09/new-york-city-congestion-pricing-trump
• https://www.carsandhorsepower.com/featured/your-fancy-car-s-touchscreen-is-worse-than-buttons-and-studies-prove-it
• https://www.cbtnews.com/automakers-demand-urgent-nhtsa-overhaul/
• https://electrek.co/2025/06/30/ford-ceo-shuts-down-tesla-full-self-driving-deal-says-waymo-is-better/
• https://www.siliconvalley.com/2025/06/10/san-francisco-bicyclist-crash-waymo/
• https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2025/RCLRPT-25V442-7250.pdf
• https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2025/RCLRPT-25V437-0139.pdf
• https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2025/RCLRPT-25V422-9951.pdf
• https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2025/RCLRPT-25V433-3157.pdf

We're back with Phil Koopman to continue our discussion about AI and Auto Safety. Phil walks us through four crucial areas: safety engineering, security, machine learning, and human factors. Can large language models be used for safety? How do we acknowledge robot drivers? When does Fred return? All that and more in this episode.

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More from Phil over at Substack.

Hey Folks,

Fred it out for the next couple of weeks. In his place we sit down for an in-depth chat with Phil Koopman to discuss artificial intelligence and auto safety. Enjoy.

Support the Show. Support Safety.

This weeks links:

• https://www.autosafety.org/podcast/part-1-with-philip-koopman-and-william-h-widen/
• https://www.autosafety.org/podcast/part-2-with-philip-koopman-and-william-h-widen/
• https://philkoopman.substack.com/p/a-practical-list-of-embodied-ai-safety-b23

Hazardous robo-taxis, the government's role in safeguarding—or failing to safeguard—the public and how to draw your own crosswalk is the TLDR. Bloomberg reporter Steve Man becomes an PR flak for Tesla, Sean P. Duffy updates the part 555 exemption process (also known as, Look ma, no pedals), Mitsubishi gets into battery swapping and recalls galore.

Donate if you like Fred.

This weeks links:

• https://www.nhtsa.gov/press-releases/streamline-exemption-process-noncompliant
• https://electrek.co/2025/06/16/bloomberg-most-embarassing-report-tesla-waymo-self-driving/
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NyuOQeaJZSk
• https://electrek.co/2025/06/14/mitsubishi-debuts-ev-battery-swap-network-for-cars-and-trucks-in-tokyo/
• https://www.29news.com/2025/05/22/charlottesville-activist-facing-vandalism-charges-makeshift-crosswalk/
• https://arstechnica.com/cars/2025/06/smart-tires-will-report-on-the-health-of-roads-in-new-pilot-program/
• https://www.forbes.com/sites/sonariglinton/2025/06/16/road-deaths-surge-and-black-families-suffer-most/
• https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2025/RCLRPT-25V387-6543.pdf
• https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2025/RCLRPT-25V375-8701.pdf
• https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2025/RCLRPT-25V376-0305.pdf
• https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2025/RCLRPT-25V379-5861.pdf
• https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2025/RCLRPT-25V369-0728.pdf

Tesla is trying to hide their crash data, Sean P Duffy doesn't enjoy clean air and wouldn't it be great if safety standards were set globally? Plus recalls, EV fires on ships, the WSJ spouts nonsense and so does Waymo.

Support the show!

This weeks links:

• https://www.transportation.gov/briefing-room/trumps-transportation-secretary-sean-p-duffy-announces-key-step-toward-making-cars
• https://arstechnica.com/cars/2025/06/gop-intensifies-war-against-evs-and-efficient-cars/
• https://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/autonomous-farming-agriculture-equipment-california/3878319/
• https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-06-08/waymo-vehicles-set-on-fire-protesters-police-clash
• https://newatlas.com/automotive/volvo-adaptive-seatbelt/
• https://www.thedrive.com/news/elon-musks-tesla-cries-competitive-harm-over-self-driving-crash-data-disclosure
• https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/companies/tesla-tries-to-block-access-to-public-records-ahead-of-austin-robotaxi-launch/ar-AA1Gh4z0
• https://www.wsj.com/lifestyle/travel/road-trips-self-driving-cars-ad501e2d
• https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2025/RCLRPT-25V357-7814.pdf
• https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2025/RCLRPT-25V356-1033.pdf
• https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/inv/2025/INOA-PE25004-11072.pdf

The Orange one has a big beautiful bill that no one seems to have read and undermines states to create their own rules around AI. This is not good for safety and a whole bunch of other reasons. Tesla is going to release their robo-taxi's... popcorn at the ready. And no one can seem to make a rear-view camera system that works.

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This weeks links:

• https://www.techpolicy.press/the-big-beautiful-bill-could-decimate-legal-accountability-for-tech-and-anything-tech-touches/
• https://www.lawfaremedia.org/article/the-house-reconciliation-bill-s-ai-preemption-clearly-violates-the-byrd-rule
• https://electrek.co/2025/06/03/tesla-tsla-sales-continue-crash-europe-clings-fluke-norway/
• https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/03/nyregion/tesla-chargers-new-jersey-turnpike.html
• https://electrek.co/2025/05/23/tesla-full-self-driving-veers-off-road-flips-car-scary-crash-driver-couldnt-prevent/
• https://electrek.co/2025/05/21/tesla-head-self-driving-admits-lagging-a-couple-years-behind-waymo/
• https://www.msn.com/en-us/politics/government/transportation-secretary-slashes-more-than-50-regulations/ar-AA1FTcO8
• https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2025/RCLRPT-25E037-4912.pdf
• https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2025/RCLRPT-25V315-2916.pdf
• https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2025/RCLRPT-25V330-9935.pdf
• https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2025/RCLRPT-25V324-2868.pdf