Tesla/GettyThe future is driving ever closer when it comes to automotive technology.
Tesla and CEO, Elon Musk, are breaking new ground and perhaps saving lives with their newest self-driving software.
In this short clip taken from a Tesla DashCam, you can see how the car’s safety features work to protect drivers and passengers in real time by predicting a car accident before anyone else saw it coming.
TwitterThe footage shows a driver cruising in autopilot down the A2 highway in the Netherlands.
Suddenly, the Tesla’s Forward Collision Warning beeps, alerting the driver before the emergency braking system kicks in.
Seconds later, the vehicle in front of the Tesla rear ends an SUV flipping the car, before quickly coming to a stop after causing this horrifying road traffic accident.
Original video, authorisation from the owner. Essential, no one could predict the accident but the radar did and acted by emergency braking. pic.twitter.com/70MySRiHGR
— Hans Noordsij (@HansNoordsij) December 27, 2016
After the emergency braking system kicked in, preventing a three car pile-up, the driver was then able to take over control of the vehicle safely.
Hans Noordsij, who shared the footage on Twitter, explained that the Tesla’s autopilot radar feature predicted the crash and, not only that, was able to recognise the impending danger that was coming two cars ahead of the driver.
Although autopilot is not a particularly new functionality for cars, Tesla’s upgraded autopilot and driverless car systems are being rolled out in the model MS.
Longer version of self-driving demo with Paint It Black soundtrack https://t.co/YuUmyEaCgR
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 19, 2016
The company announced, ‘The most significant upgrade to Autopilot will be the use of more advanced signal processing to create a picture of the world using the on-board radar.’
Here’s hoping that proves to be the case, but being aware in the first place is certainly advisable rather than just relying on technology.
A former emo kid who talks too much about 8Chan meme culture, the Kardashian Klan, and how her smartphone is probably killing her. Francesca is a Cardiff University Journalism Masters grad who has done words for BBC, ELLE, The Debrief, DAZED, an art magazine you’ve never heard of and a feminist zine which never went to print.