Latest news with #ActuallySmartSummon
Yahoo
24-02-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
The agency that regulates vehicle safety — and Elon Musk's Tesla — is another target of DOGE layoffs
The agency responsible for regulating vehicle safety has cut 4% of its workforce. The NHTSA has multiple investigations into Tesla including two about its self-driving tech. The firings come as Elon Musk's DOGE makes sweeping cuts across the federal government. The agency responsible for regulating vehicle safety and is investigating Tesla has cut staff as Elon Musk's DOGE continues to make sweeping changes to the federal workforce. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration fired 4% of its workers on February 14, an individual with knowledge of the cuts told Business Insider. The agency, which is responsible for ensuring vehicle safety in the US, has three active investigations into Tesla. These include an investigation into Tesla's Actually Smart Summon (ASS) feature, which allows drivers to fetch their cars remotely using their smartphone, and investigations into the Full-Self Driving and Autopilot technology. Cuts to the NHTSA, which is part of the Department of Transportation, come as the Trump administration continues efforts to slash the federal workforce, with Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency leading the charge. The new administration fired thousands of probationary federal employees, who have typically been in their roles for less than two years, across multiple agencies on February 13. Musk's DOGE, meanwhile, has made broad cuts across multiple departments as it seeks to eliminate what it says is government waste. On Saturday, Musk sent out an email to federal employees asking them to list what work they accomplished in the past week, with the Tesla CEO posting on X that failure to respond would be taken as a resignation. It is not clear whether the NHTSA layoffs affected teams specifically involved in regulating Tesla. A review of LinkedIn profiles by BI suggests that some of the federal workers let go by the NHTSA had been in their roles for less than a year. An NHTSA spokesperson told BI that despite the job cuts, the agency remained larger than it was at the start of Joe Biden's presidency and had grown 30% during his administration. "We have retained positions critical to the mission of saving lives, preventing injuries, and reducing economic costs due to road traffic crashes. We will continue to enforce the law on all manufacturers of motor vehicles and equipment," the spokesperson said. NHTSA is responsible for overseeing vehicle recalls for automakers. It issued 932 safety recalls, affecting almost 31 million vehicles in 2022 per the agency's website. Over the past year, Tesla has issued multiple recalls for its Cybertruck, Model Y, and Model 3 vehicles. The NHTSA, which has between 500 and 1,000 employees according to its LinkedIn page, also sets rules on autonomous vehicles and robotaxis. The Washington Post reported that the small team overseeing self-driving vehicles within NHTSA has been cut in half as a result of the layoffs. The agency declined to comment to the outlet about that point. Tesla is set to enter the robotaxi market this year. Musk told investors that the EV maker plans to launch an autonomous ride-hailing vehicle service in Austin in June. Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment. tcarter@ Read the original article on Business Insider
Yahoo
12-02-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
US taps Apple exec to serve as top auto safety regulator
By David Shepardson WASHINGTON (Reuters) -President Donald Trump has nominated an Apple employee to serve as the nation's top auto safety regulator overseeing a number of ongoing safety probes into Tesla. Jonathan Morrison, who served as chief counsel of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration during the first Trump administration and had previously worked for the California New Car Dealers Association, has been nominated to serve as the agency's administrator, according to Senate records. See for yourself — The Yodel is the go-to source for daily news, entertainment and feel-good stories. By signing up, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy. Last month, U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said he would allow an ongoing government probe into Tesla's advanced driver assistance system to continue. Tesla CEO Elon Musk is a close adviser to Trump who is working on an effort to drastically slash the size of the federal government and has previously criticized numerous NHTSA actions. Two weeks before Trump took office, NHTSA opened a probe into 2.6 million Tesla vehicles over reports of crashes involving a feature that allows users to move their cars remotely. Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Morrison's LinkedIn page said he began work at Apple in May 2021. Apple did not immediately respond to a question about whether he is still at the company. NHTSA in October opened an investigation into 2.4 million Tesla vehicles equipped with Full Self-Driving (FSD) software after four reported collisions, including a fatal 2023 crash. NHTSA opened a preliminary evaluation into Tesla's Actually Smart Summon feature over reports of four crashes involving Tesla vehicles. Tesla in December 2023 recalled more than two million U.S. vehicles to install new safeguards in its Autopilot advanced driver-assistance system. NHTSA is still probing whether that recall is adequate to address concerns drivers are not paying attention. In October 2018, Morrison - then chief counsel at NHTSA - told Tesla in a letter the automaker had made inaccurate safety claims that violated the agency's guidelines. Duffy last month signed an order directing NHTSA to rescind landmark fuel economy standards issued under Biden that aimed to drastically reduce fuel use for cars and trucks.
