A Tesla Model 3 on Autopilot crashed into a highway median divider in northern Greece when the AI system suddenly veered right at a highway fork, injuring no one but causing significant vehicle damage.
In May 2018, You You Xue, an American Tesla Model 3 owner, was conducting an unofficial European road trip to showcase the electric vehicle when his car crashed on a highway near Florina, Greece. The vehicle was traveling at 120 km/h (75 mph) with Autopilot engaged when it suddenly veered right without warning at a highway exit fork and crashed into the center median divider. The driver admitted he was glancing at navigation on his phone with one hand on the steering wheel when the incident occurred. The crash caused severe damage to the vehicle including shattered wheels and a door that would not open properly, though the driver was unharmed and no airbags deployed. Tesla stated they could not retrieve data from the vehicle since the accident occurred in an unsupported area where the Model 3 lacked connectivity, and emphasized that drivers must remain responsible when using Autopilot. The vehicle was not officially approved for driving in Europe and had no internet connection or local service support. Greek police confirmed no other vehicles were involved, the driver passed a breathalyzer test, and no traffic laws were broken.
Domain classification, causal taxonomy, severity scores, and national security assessments were LLM-classified and may contain errors.
AI systems that fail to perform reliably or effectively under varying conditions, exposing them to errors and failures that can have significant consequences, especially in critical applications or areas that require moral reasoning.
AI system
Due to a decision or action made by an AI system
Unintentional
Due to an unexpected outcome from pursuing a goal
Post-deployment
Occurring after the AI model has been trained and deployed