Is texting behind the wheel of a self-driving Tesla crazy?

As self-driving cars get closer to reality, Tesla is striving to remain a big player. But is it sacrificing safety to stay in the game?

For the past few weeks, Geoff Perlman, a 61-year-old technology executive from Texas, has been testing a free trial of Tesla’s latest self-driving software as he travels around Austin.

He’s impressed: it can handle confusing lane adjustments and park itself in busy lots better, he thinks, than the average human. He’s expecting to recommend that his 89-year-old father-in-law upgrades his own Tesla with the system, which costs an extra $8,000 (£5,950), to help out as old age closes in.

But his confidence has its limits. For now, he says, he keeps his eyes on the road and does not pick up the phone to text.

“Staring at the phone when you’re in a several thousand pound vehicle travelling down the highway at this point seems crazy to me,” he says.

Tesla boss Elon Musk doesn’t appear to share his qualms. Last month, he told investors: “We’re going to look closely at the safety statistics, but we will allow you to text and drive essentially”.

And when asked on X: “Wait… am I able to text and drive on [the latest software]?” Musk replied: “Yes, depending on the context of surrounding traffic.”

Tesla did not respond to requests for comment to clarify this remark.

But the move has renewed alarm among safety advocates about what they perceive as Musk’s willingness to take safety short cuts, as advances by rivals like Google’s Waymo raise pressure on the firm to deliver on its promises of self-driving cars.

“Tesla doesn’t always seem to have full grasp of what the consequences of its technology changes would be and I think this is kind of a very big example of that,” says Michael Brooks, executive director of the Center for Auto Safety. “Essentially what Tesla is saying here is they are going to allow their drivers to break the law.”

Tesla’s automated options for car-buyers range from Autopilot, which has features such as automatic lane centring, to a more advanced software it launched in 2020 as Full Self Driving or FSD.

Currently only available in North America, Australia and New Zealand, FSD has additional powers, like the ability to summon your car via app, or have it park and navigate itself.

Both systems technically require driver supervision at all times, bringing the firm’s decision to make it easier to text in tension with laws in the US, the UK and elsewhere that make texting while driving illegal.

Musk has argued that if a driver is going to text – a practice surveys indicate is common – it is preferable to do it while using the firm’s software than without, due to safety benefits.

For example, according to the company, cars with its FSD features have seven times fewer major collisions.