Tesla Deepfake Claims Rejected, To Ask for Elon Musk’s Deposition on Autopilot Claims in Crash Investigation

Isaiah Richard, Tech Times 27 April 2023, 09:04 pm

The lawsuit from 2019 regarding a Tesla Autopilot crash is now seeing developments in the case, as Tesla was recently rejected by the courts for its claims that Elon Musk's public statements may have been deepfaked. The company resorted to this reasoning as Musk is a prominent figure and that his statements may be twisted by unknown actors, hence misleading statements.

(Photo : Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

Tesla's Deepfake Claims for Elon Musk Rejected by Court

Tesla was recently rejected by Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Evette Pennypacker regarding its claims that Elon Musk may be subjected to deep fake in his statements online. In the tentative ruling by the court (via Ars Technica), Judge Pennypacker is not buying Tesla's claims that Musk is a famous personality and that his statements are "immune" to get questioned in court.

"Their position is that because Mr. Musk is famous and might be more of a target for deep fakes, his public statements are immune. In other words, Mr. Musk, and others in his position, can simply say whatever they like in the public domain, then hide behind the potential for their recorded statements being a deep fake to avoid taking ownership of what they did actually say and do. The Court is unwilling to set such a precedent by condoning Tesla's approach here," said Judge Pennypacker.

The case in question is related to the investigation of a fatal crash that occurred in March 2018 involving a Tesla Model X that was in Autopilot mode. The victim, Walter Huang, was a 38-year-old Apple engineer who was killed when his car collided with a highway barrier.

It was previously said by Tesla that as a public figure, Elon Musk may be deep faked, and may be subject to getting his words twisted or deep faked to appear wrong to the public. Tesla has been accused of misleading customers about the capabilities of the technology, which may have led to the fatal crash.

Court to Likely Ask for Elon Musk's Deposition

With the proceedings of the case, the court is now looking to ask for Elon Musk's deposition behind this case, despite Tesla trying their best to avoid the law officials getting to the tech CEO and asking for his statement. Tesla's approach did not work, especially as Huang's family is asking for the authenticity of Musk's previous statements which may have contained claims regarding the Autopilot's capabilities.

Tesla's Autopilot and FSD Issues

In recent times, Elon Musk and Tesla faced scrutiny over its autonomous driving technologies, centering on the Autopilot and FSD which have led to multiple crashes and in some cases, led to fatalities.

This dispute remains unclear, especially as the NHTSA has recently claimed that the Autopilot is "less likely to crash" on its own, as other factors may have affected the accident.

As this case continues to unfold, it is clear that there is a need for greater transparency and accountability in the development and marketing of driver-assistance technologies, including one from Tesla and Elon Musk.