Tesla Owner Wins $10k Settlement Over Tesla's FSD Claims

UK Tesla owner successfully settles lawsuit against Tesla

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In a landmark decision, Ed Butler, a UK Tesla owner, won a significant settlement from Tesla after challenging the company's Full Self-Driving (FSD) feature claims. Butler successfully settled his lawsuit over FSD capabilities, which he argued had not been delivered as promised when he purchased his Model 3. This settlement not only returned the cost of the undelivered FSD feature but also set a notable precedent for consumer rights in the region.

Butler's case reinforces the strength of the UK's Consumer Rights Act of 2015, which proved to be a formidable tool in holding Tesla accountable. The act's stipulation that goods must match their advertised description was the linchpin of Butler's claim, highlighting the legal obligations of companies to fulfill their marketing claims.

Contrast with the US Arbitration Ruling

In stark contrast to the UK's consumer-centric outcome, a California federal judge's ruling last month paints a different picture of Tesla's legal defenses. The judge ruled that Tesla owners must settle their disputes through individual arbitration rather than in court, adhering to Tesla's terms and conditions agreed upon at purchase. This decision emphasizes the binding nature of such agreements and showcases the company's success in utilizing arbitration to avoid class action lawsuits.

Tesla's reliance on arbitration clauses in the US is a common practice within the tech industry, designed to mitigate legal risks and manage disputes out of the public court system. The California ruling illustrates the effectiveness of these clauses in protecting corporate interests, even amid allegations of misleading advertising and safety concerns related to Tesla's automated driving features.

Analysis of Legal Strategies and Consumer Rights

The contrasting outcomes of these cases in the UK and US highlight differing national stances on consumer rights and corporate accountability. While UK law enabled Butler to challenge and settle with Tesla, the US arbitration ruling underscores the challenges consumers face when bound by pre-agreed contractual terms. These divergent paths reflect the complexities consumers and corporations encounter in the evolving landscape of automotive technology and legal recourse.

With over £8,000 (About $9,800 USD) in settlement and the removal of FSD from his vehicle, Butler's case against Tesla concludes, setting a benchmark for consumer rights in the technology and automotive industries. This case could lead to increased legal scrutiny of Tesla's FSD feature descriptions and a push for more transparent communication from the company to avoid similar legal disputes in the future. For Tesla owners, this case is a clarion call to remain vigilant about the features they are promised and to seek correction if those promises are not kept.

The recent UK settlement in favor of Ed Butler against Tesla, adjacent to the California ruling on mandatory arbitration, presents a nuanced view of the legal battles surrounding Tesla's advanced driving technologies.

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Tesla Increases Price of Model S; Starts Offering Free Lifetime Supercharging

Not a Tesla App

For the first time in quite a while, Tesla has increased the price of one of its vehicle offerings. The Model S Long Range and the Model S Plaid have both received a hefty price increase. However, not all is bad - as Tesla also added a new benefit for buyers.

Price Increase

The price increase for the Model S is $5,000 - currently only in the United States. This price increase will likely impact other markets, including Canada, in the coming days.

The Model S Long Range now starts at $79,990, while the Model S Plaid now starts at $94,990. The Model S and Model X now have the same starting price. Interestingly, that’s also the same pricing point for the Cybertruck AWD and Cyberbeast Trimotor non-Foundation Series. 

The vehicle configuration does not appear to have changed, so the new pricing is simply an increase rather than the addition or removal of features. Tesla previously cut the price of the Model S and Model X by 15% in 2023, so this could simply be an adjustment to ensure that the vehicle pricing stays in line with inflation and other factors.

Free Lifetime Supercharging

For those on the fence about ordering a Model S, Tesla has brought back Free Lifetime Supercharging when you order a new Model S on or after December 13, 2024. As always, Free Lifetime Supercharging is restricted to the buyer’s Tesla account and to that specific vehicle. It cannot be transferred to another vehicle or another owner after ownership transfer. It’s worth noting, that it also doesn’t exclude the owner from receiving Supercharger idle fees or congestion fees. There is currently no end date for this promotion.

There are currently no changes to the Model X, neither a price increase nor the addition of Lifetime Superchargering. However, when Tesla makes changes to one of their premium vehicles, it usually affects the other one as well. So be on the lookout for potential changes to the Model X offering in the coming days.

We’ve seen Tesla value Lifetime Supercharging at $5,000, so this falls in line with the price increase we’re seeing. It’s possible that Tesla will begin to bring back Lifetime Supercharging as a perk for buying into their more premium Model S and Model X cars, or this could be another temporary promotion to get buyers who are on the fence to go ahead and make their purchase while this promotion lasts.

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Tesla’s Optimus Robot Learns to Walk Without Vision [VIDEO]

Optimus Falls - but catches itself!

Not a Tesla App

Tesla recently showed off a demo of Optimus, its humanoid robot, walking around in moderately challenging terrain—not on a flat surface but on dirt and slopes. These things can be difficult for a humanoid robot, especially during the training cycle.

Daily walks help clear your mind pic.twitter.com/dUsW58trS6

— Tesla Optimus (@Tesla_Optimus) December 9, 2024

A Look Behind the Curtain

Most interestingly, Milan Kovac, VP of Engineering for Optimus, clarified what it takes to get Optimus to this stage. Let’s break down what he said.

Optimus is Blind

Optimus is getting seriously good at walking now - it can keep its balance over uneven ground - even while walking blind. Tesla is currently using just the sensors, all powered by a neural net running on the embedded computer. 

Essentially, Tesla is building Optimus from the ground up, relying on as much additional data as possible while it trains vision. This is similar to how they train FSD on vehicles, using LiDAR rigs to validate the vision system’s accuracy. While Optimus doesn’t have LiDAR, it relies on all those other sensors on board, many of which will likely become simplified as vision takes over as the primary sensor.

Today, Optimus is walking blind, but it’s able to react almost instantly to changes in the terrain underneath it, even if it falls or slips. 

What’s Next?

Next up, Tesla AI will be adding vision to Optimus - helping complete the neural net. Remember, Optimus runs on the same overall AI stack as FSD - in fact, Optimus uses an FSD computer and an offshoot of the FSD stack for vision-based tasks.

Milan mentions they’re planning on adding vision to help the robot plan ahead and improve its walking gait. While the zombie shuffle is iconic and a little bit amusing, getting humanoid robots to walk like humans is actually difficult.

There’s plenty more, too - including better responsiveness to velocity and direction commands and learning to fall and stand back up. Falling while protecting yourself to minimize damage is something natural to humans - but not exactly natural to something like a robot. Training it to do so is essential in keeping the robot, the environment around it, and the people it is interacting with safe.

We’re excited to see what’s coming with Optimus next because it is already getting started in some fashion in Tesla’s factories.

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