Regulatory Shot Tesla "Seconds Instigation": Rapid Software Update Prohibits Passengers from Playing Games while on the Go

Under pressure from regulators, Tesla has banned passengers from playing video games on a central touchscreen while their vehicles are driving.

On Thursday (December 23), local time, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said that Tesla has sent a software update package to the car through the network, and the function of playing the game after the update will be locked, and passengers will not be able to open any game applications while the car is driving.

An NHTSA spokesperson said in a statement on Thursday that regulators discussed concerns about the system with Tesla, after which the company decided to immediately proceed with banning passengers from playing games while driving. As part of the Tesla Holiday software release, the rest of the vehicles should be updated today.

Tesla's move comes the day after NHTSA announced a formal investigation into it. On Wednesday (December 22), NHTSA announced an investigation into Tesla's "Passenger Play" feature, which covers more than 580,000 Tesla vehicles from 2017 to 2022.

Previously, Vince Patton, a 59-year-old Tesla owner, filed a complaint last month after discovering that drivers could play games while on the go. Patton liked his car and said he didn't have any complaints about Tesla, but he was concerned that some drivers would play games, "Someone will be killed, this feature is absolutely crazy." ”

NHTSA said at the time that it would investigate various aspects of the feature, "including how often and how often Passport Play is used." NHTSA found that some of these games can run while the car is on, "and the feature may distract the driver and increase the risk of crashing." The document shows that the feature is available from December 2020. Until then, the game feature could only be enabled when its vehicle was parked.

The agency said Thursday that its investigation into tesla's other features will continue even with the update, and does not rule out the possibility of requiring Tesla to recall vehicles . NHTSA said in a statement that "the Vehicle Safety Act prohibits manufacturers from selling vehicles that are defective and pose an unreasonable risk to safety, including technologies that distract drivers from driving safely." ”

The agency added that in the future, it will also assess how car companies can identify and prevent the dangers of distraction due to the misuse or intentional use of screens and other convenient technologies.

In addition, NHTSA is also investigating Tesla's driver assistance system "Autopilot" and full self-driving system. Tesla said neither system can fully drive the vehicle, and during the ride, the driver must be aware and ready to intervene at any time.