A Miami jury ordered Elon Musk’s car company on Friday to pay $329m to victims of a deadly crash involving its Autopilot driver assist technology, opening the door to other costly lawsuits and potentially striking a blow to Tesla’s reputation for safety at a critical time for the company.
The federal jury held that Tesla bore significant responsibility because its technology failed and that not all the blame can be put on a reckless driver, even one who admitted he was distracted by his cell phone before hitting a young couple out gazing at the stars. The decision comes as Musk seeks to convince Americans his cars are safe enough