Elon Musk defended his Tesla Full Self-Driving feature once again against fraud allegations made by the California Department of Motor Vehicles.
This was revealed by the automaker's Dec. 5 filing with the state Office of Administrative Hearings, which was just recently on Friday, Dec. 8.
Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and X, speaks to reporters as he leaves the “AI Insight Forum” at the Russell Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill on September 13, 2023, in Washington, DC.
Based on the filing, DMV had investigated the EV manufacturer's use of the Autopilot and Full Self-Driving brands between 2014 and 2017; the agency also investigated other similar terms used by Tesla.
DMV officials claim that Tesla is falsely using these brands to fool EV buyers. However, Elon Musk claimed that they were not doing anything wrong.
Elon Musk Defends Tesla Full Self-Driving Feature Against DMV
According to the Los Angeles Times' latest report, Elon Musk claims that it was DMV's fault for allowing Tesla to use the Full Self-Driving and Autopilot brands without implementing restrictions for the past few years.
The tech executive also argued that the U.S. Constitution's 1st Amendment Right allows them to use these terms in their business. Elon Musk even accused the Californian Department of Motor Vehicles of violating its free speech rights.
"The DMV chose not to take any action against Tesla or otherwise communicate to Tesla that its advertising or use of these brand names was or might be problematic," said Tesla via Reuters.
Elon Musk and his company further stated that in 2016, DMV decided not to impose prohibitions against the use of "self-driving" and other similar terms when drawing up regulations about statements on autonomous innovations.
"Tesla relied upon Claimant's (the DMV's) implicit approval of these brand names," added Tesla.
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California DMV's Accusations Against Tesla
The inside of a Tesla vehicle is viewed as it sits parked in a new Tesla showroom and service center in Red Hook, Brooklyn on July 5, 2016, in New York City. The electric car company and its CEO and founder Elon Musk have come under increasing scrutiny following a crash of one of its electric cars while using the controversial autopilot service.
On Nov. 20, DMV officials filed a motion, accusing Tesla of misleading car consumers with claims regarding the Full Self-Driving and Autopilot features.
One of the descriptions that the Department of Motor Vehicles pointed out is Tesla's claim that the system is designed for short and long-distance trips without any assistance from the human driver.
DMV's allegations could be true since the Autopilot and Full Self-Driving features are still far from being perfect.
However, Elon Musk always includes words like "hope" and "expect," meaning that they are still working on the automotive features to achieve the claims they make.
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