An independent examination into a notable pedestrian mishap involving a Cruise autonomous vehicle last October has revealed noteworthy insights. The inspection, conducted by the law firm Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, which was commissioned by Cruise, suggests that technical difficulties with internet connectivity impeded the company’s ability to share a video of the accident with regulatory bodies.
Details of the October Incident
The accident, which made news in October, involved a Cruise robotaxi and a pedestrian who had been hit by another vehicle operated by a human and subsequently was struck by the robotaxi. The San Francisco Fire Department had to use specialized equipment to free the woman, who was trapped under the autonomous car and sustained severe injuries.
Allegations of Misinformation by Cruise
Following the incident, allegations surfaced from the California DMV that Cruise had provided misleading and incomplete information regarding the incident. It was reported that the robotaxi continued to move for an additional 20 feet after the collision, dragging the pedestrian further, which was not initially disclosed in the videos provided by Cruise.
The law firm’s report indicates that Cruise did attempt to show the complete footage, including the additional movement of the vehicle post-collision, to regulators and officials. However, the sharing of the full video was hindered by poor internet service.
Cruise’s representatives admitted to not proactively clarifying details of the vehicle’s movement after the collision in their primary discussions with regulators and officials. Despite this, many claimed to have played the entire video showing the aftermath of the accident during meetings, although they acknowledged that internet issues likely obstructed a clear view of the event.
The report concludes that, except for one instance, internet connectivity problems during initial meetings on October 3rd were significant enough to potentially prevent regulators from seeing the complete and unobstructed accident footage.
