The Pulse
NHTSA Opens Probe Into Five Crashes Involving Comma.ai
NHTSA opened a preliminary evaluation after identifying five crashes involving vehicles equipped with Comma.ai devices and openpilot software. The crashes resulted in three deaths and injuries to 11 people, according to the agency.
AI.info Team ·
Five crashes, three deaths and 11 injuries have prompted a federal investigation into aftermarket driving-assistance devices made by comma.ai. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration opened a preliminary evaluation on September 21 after finding that vehicles equipped with comma devices reportedly struck stopped or slow-moving vehicles in the same travel lane.
NHTSA’s review does not establish that the devices caused the crashes. The agency says preliminary data indicates the comma system may not have adequately detected or responded to vehicles in its path. Investigators will examine whether the devices were powered on or engaged, how the system performed and what safeguards were active during each incident.
The agency’s preliminary evaluation document identifies the products under review as comma three, comma 3X, comma four and the company’s openpilot software.
Five crashes triggered the PE26007 investigation
NHTSA says two of the five crashes produced three fatalities. Four crashes involved non-fatal injuries, including serious injuries, to 11 other people. The agency says it received the cases through federal crash reports, vehicle-owner complaints and police outreach.
Investigators confirmed that comma systems were powered on or engaged in multiple crashes. The agency’s review will focus on incidents involving stopped or slower vehicles, as well as other hazards positioned in a vehicle’s lane.
“ODI is opening this Preliminary Evaluation to investigate further any incidents involving the comma devices and openpilot,” NHTSA says in the document. The agency will obtain data to verify the system status in each incident and assess the system’s performance and safety safeguards.
Comma products add control to existing vehicle systems
NHTSA describes comma devices as aftermarket accessories intended to augment a vehicle’s driving-automation capabilities. The hardware connects to existing vehicle systems, combines its own cameras with factory sensors and provides automated control of speed and vehicle heading.
The agency says comma sells the devices directly to consumers and provides installation instructions for consumer use. NHTSA cites the company’s marketing, which says a buyer can set up the system in a car in 15 minutes. The same material describes openpilot as an open-source advanced driver-assistance system that works on more than 325 vehicle models and can drive for hours without intervention.
Comma’s own safety instructions say openpilot requires the driver to remain alert, pay attention and be ready to take over at all times. The federal review will test how those instructions, the system’s safeguards and the hardware performed in the reported crashes.
Forked software will also be examined
Openpilot is open-source software, and NHTSA says some users may run modified versions known as forks. The agency will assess any crash involving a fork and consider which components it shares with the main openpilot software.
That distinction matters because the hardware, core software and modified software may not be identical from one vehicle to another. NHTSA’s document does not assign responsibility for any crash or state that a particular software version caused an incident. It says investigators will first verify the system configuration and operating status for each case.
Investigation adds federal scrutiny to consumer-installed automation
The probe places a consumer-installed driving system under the same kind of detailed federal review that has followed crashes involving factory driver-assistance features. Unlike equipment integrated into a vehicle by its manufacturer, comma devices are sold as accessories and installed by customers using supplied wiring and instructions.
NHTSA estimates that about 30,000 vehicles are equipped with the products identified in the investigation. The agency lists five crash report identifiers in its evaluation and says its findings may change as investigators collect additional data.
Opening a preliminary evaluation does not mean NHTSA has reached a defect finding, ordered a recall or determined that the devices violated federal safety requirements. The immediate question is narrower and concrete: whether comma hardware and openpilot adequately detected hazards in the lane during the five crashes, and whether the safeguards intended to keep drivers engaged worked as designed.