Tesla: Autopilot Was Engaged in Fatal Crash in California

Tesla Inc. TSLA 3.24% late Friday acknowledged its semiautonomous Autopilot system was engaged by the driver in the seconds before a fatal crash last week, raising more questions about the safety of self-driving technology on public roads. Federal investigators this week began examining the March 23 crash of a Model X sport-utility vehicle that was traveling south on Highway 101, near Mountain View, Calif., before it struck a barrier, then was hit by two other vehicles and caught fire. The driver of the Model X was killed. Tesla said its vehicle logs show the driver's hands weren't detected on the wheel for six seconds before the collision, and he took no action despite having five seconds and about 500 feet of unobstructed view of a concrete highway divider. On Tuesday, the National Transportation Safety Board dispatched investigators to the scene, the second Tesla crash to attract the agency's attention this year.