We also cover issues such as fast fashion, sustainable fabrics, recycling and supply chains. In a detailed discussion of the ethical and moral concerns that pertain to autonomous driving systems, The New Yorker reports there were strong differences in peoples responses that correlate to the country they live in and their religious training. To request a reprint or commercial or derivative permissions for this article, please click on the relevant link below. The defendants in the suit have committed themselves to the responsible and ethical sourcing of minerals and have policies against the use of child labor. For our analysis, we used a total of 86 documents issued by 29 companiesFootnote3 in the forefront of AV technology. While acknowledging these limitations, we believe this list is adequate for our research given that it includes a comprehensive and state-of-the-art compilation of ethical issues in the field of AI ethics. But theres one major difference between the situation that the hotshot carmaker faces now, versus where it stood in the past. Some people dont really care about wearing [personal protective equipment], he said. Forced, prison, bonded, indentured, or slavery, and all forms of human trafficking, are all improper because they abuse workers who cannot assent to their deeds (Baffour-Awuah, 2020). The empirical findings reported in the literature are also quite controversial, as they reveal potential challenges in adapting societal expectations to moral decision-making driving algorithms (Kallioinen et al., Citation2019). Tesla's current, level-two Autopilot requires the driver to remain alert and ready to act, with hands on the wheel. situations where it is unclear who should be responsible for an outcome (Matthias, Citation2004; Nyholm, Citation2018), that are expected to arise in the context of AV technology as a result of the fragmentation of the technology action (many-hands problem Van de Poel, Fahlquist, Doorn, Zwart, & Royakkers, Citation2012). The handbook should probably contain a passage that permits Musk to partake in questionable behaviors as long as he keeps growing the company, increasing the value of Tesla for its shareholders and offers a great product for their customers. They also complain of little transparency by the company about new cases of infection, as well as its response. He believes, If somebody graduated from a great university, that may be an indication that they will be capable of great things, but its not necessarily the case. Therefore, weak trolley cases seem to be plausible. Tesla Inc. is a leading electric automobile manufacturer in the United States. It was mentioned earlier that companies acknowledge that AV technology will not eliminate accidents, yet some companies are invested in developing AVs which will never cause or be responsible for accidents (By formally defining the parameters of the dangerous situation and proper response, we can say that responsibility is assigned to the party who did not comply with the proper response. We removed one ethical issue (field-specific deliberations) as well as all AI references as we focus on the AV as a particular AI-powered technology. One promising way to alleviate or at least diminish this problem is to use techniques that are popular in the field of Anthropology, such as participant observation, in-depth interviews and focus groups. Could companies program their cars to favor their customers when faced with perilous choices? We are. Maarten suggests that society will tolerate a certain level of deaths and injuries attributable to autonomous cars, but I think he may be a bit optimistic in that regard. Naro, who has opted not to return because her 6-year-old son was hospitalized with a respiratory illness this year, said that with distancing requirements only loosely followed, it is unthinkable for her to work in the resulting conditions: hours-long shifts with shared machinery, in close quarters with others. Copyright 2023 CleanTechnica. Any number of possibilities suggest themselves. As a consequence, our analysis of these reports which uses a combination of manual reading and text mining, risks conflating different meanings attached to the same vocabulary. We found several statements in the industry reports that allow us to further reflect on the approach of the industry with respect to accountability. Tesla is leading the way in terms of introducing new clean transportation and clean energy products to market. The California Transparency in Supply Chains Act of 2010 necessitates Tesla Supplier Partners to provide full disclosure (Code of Business Conduct and Ethics, 2017). The case for killing the trolley problem (or letting it die), Paving the road ahead: Autonomous vehicles, products liability, and the need for a new approach, Autonomous vehicles: Scientometric and bibliometric review, Look ma, no hands: Wrinkles and wrecks in the age of autonomous vehicles, Ethical decision making during automated vehicle crashes. Elon Musks talks of a Twitter takeover mask Teslas troubles in China, Twitter adopts poison pill intended to thwart Elon Musks takeover bid, In major reversal, Elon Musk wont join Twitter board, How auto regulators played mind games with Elon Musk. (vii) Therefore AVs should be programmed with x. When cars first came out, Im sure people had fears about riding on a carriage that involved a combustion engine, right? Guides for finding ethical and environmentally friendly food brands. To tackle such concerns, the company focused on new ways to reduce costs. The electric carmaker has struggled with quality issues as it has scaled its production from tens of thousand cars a year to 500,000 in 2020. Although contextual analysis is crucial for this investigation, we acknowledge the limitations of the manual approach. In the U.S., the Environmental Protection Agency accused Tesla last week of failing to prove it is in compliance with federal emissions standards for hazardous air pollutants. He is proud to be "woke" and doesn't really give a damn why the glass broke. It cannot jump over to an adjacent elevator shaft, nor must it decide what to do if a pedestrian, bicyclist, or another elevator suddenly appears in its path. Elon Musk says full self-driving Tesla tech 'very close' "It seems like they're just increasing their cobalt use," Gallagher said, adding that it is unclear how the company will alleviate concerns about the potential for increased risk related to human rights issues. Tesla has shifted the auto industry toward electric vehicles, achieved consistently growing revenues, and at the start of 2020 was the highest-performing automaker in terms of total return, sales . Usually employee handbooks are long, boring, jargon-laden and written in an authoritarian tone. Musk claimed in an email that an employee attempted to engage in damaging sabotage to our operations, and accused Wall Street short-sellers, oil & gas companies or the multitude of big gas/diesel car company competitors may have been behind the activities. According to the handbook, trust is mission critical. Employees are free to go up the chain of command, including Musk himself, if they believe that they have something of value to offer. The AV social dilemma, i.e. Tesla is not an outlier, nor are we going against the grain. And moreover, it is noted that, because we are using a list of ethical issues based on deontological guidelines as a guidance tool in this research, our results will necessarily reflect such top-down deontological approach, thus leaving out other potential relevant ethical approaches and principles related, for instance, to informed consent and risk acceptance (Menon & Alexander, Citation2020). Health officials say no (again). This discussion, of course, was driven by Zachary Shahans recent discussion with Elon Musk regarding the rapid advances coming soon to a Tesla near you. Regarding the solutions proposed by industry to address extreme traffic situations, we report for now that companies rely on radars and speed limitation to address the problem of blind spots which are often at the root of these traffic situations. Subscribe to read Teslas full ethical ratings. Is Tesla an ethical company? - Quora We started by reading and analysing the articles in order to identify the ethical issues prioritised by the scientific community. Tesla is also still tangling with local air quality authorities in California the Bay Area Air Quality Management District over previously disclosed "notices of violation," relating to "air permitting and related compliance for the Fremont Factory.". Driving to safety: How many miles of driving would it take to demonstrate autonomous vehicle reliability? As of June 2020, the California DMV had listed 66 permit holders for testing with a driver, 2 permit holders for driverless testing, and 0 permit holders for AV deployment. Mission Specialists are trained on the governing operational design domain, and are prepared to take manual control of the vehicle when presented with a scenario that is not included in the current operational design domain Uber Advanced Technologies Group A Principled Approach To Safety (Uber, Citation2018). A Division of NBCUniversal. On Twitter, Musk declares that Tesla will "now move its HQ and future programs to. Volkswagen is one of the largest car companies in the world, but its manufacturing prowess imposes a complicated moral responsibility on it. Indeed, it has been reported that thus far governments have avoided strict measures in order to promote AV developments (Taeihagh & Lim, Citation2019). On a call with investors, Musk called the company's performance "strong" and noted that if Tesla is to make the 500,000 vehicles it projects for 2020, it will have produced 1,000 times what it . Tesla accused of environmental rule violations in U.S. and Germany - CNBC In order for AVs to successfully deal with mundane traffic situations, companies propose advanced sensing and AI-powered solutions. Only published scientific documents with available full text written in English language and addressing the moral or ethics dimensions of automated driving systems were considered eligible for this study. Tesla fires back over ethics accusation after fatal crash Therefore, based on this eligibility criteria, 158 records were excluded (23 records were not published scientific documents; 47 records did not have full text available; 3 records were not written in English language; and 85 records were not about the moral or ethics dimensions of automated driving systems) thus leaving a total of 238 records for further review and analysis. Musk tweets, If anyone is arrested, I ask that it only be me.. This is a BETA experience. The World Health Organization declares the coronavirus a pandemic. 2020 should have been a massive . Plaintiffs in the case filed an amended complaint June 26 targeting Tesla's recent deal with Glencore and stating they will seek details of the arrangement in discovery. We looked at several ethical issues including Teslas approach to climate change, environmental reporting, toxic chemicals, conflict minerals, supply chain management, executive pay and tax conduct. The papers are not supposed to be submitted for academic credit. Recently, it has been hypothesised that AV fatalities carry more weight because those are rare events and not so much due to intrinsic differences in public perception between AV and conventional vehicles fatalities (Huang, van Cranenburgh, & Chorus, Citation2020). The ethics of crashes with self-driving cars: A roadmap, I. In the Nuro report Delivering Safety: Nuro's Approach, it is stated that, in the unlikely case of a Nuro shuttle ever encountering an unavoidable collision scenario the driverless passengerless vehicle has the unique opportunity to prioritise the safety of humans, other road users, and occupied vehicles over its contents (Nuro, Citation2018). Electric vehicle behemoth Tesla Inc. is facing renewed pressure to disclose its methods for tracking potential human rights issues in its supply chain following a recently reported cobalt supply deal with Glencore PLC. If at this time you do not feel comfortable returning to work, you can stay home without penalty and take the time unpaid., The Technology 202: Elon Musk's re-opening win could have long-term consequences for the company's reputation. Car Maintenance. It is recalled that, as far as this literature review is concerned, our aim is quite modest as we intend solely to provide an outline of the AV ethics debates in the scientific literature. (PDF) Risk Management of Corporate Social Responsibility and This argument has been undermined by some scholars who claim that increased manufacturer liability will not be problematic, as AVs will be safer and will bring down the overall cost of litigation and insurance (Garza, Citation2011). To access all of our tools and data - and get the Ethical Consumer print magazine - start your subscription today. Tech is not your friend. How Do You Charge An Electric Car At Home? The amazing fact is that every Tesla is actually carefully constructed to last a lifetime or 100 years (!) Safety and security are both related to the integrity of systems but, whereas safety concerns the adequate functioning of a system, security is about the ability of a system to resist intentionally malicious actions. accountability in the context of AVs and how industry as a whole differs from academia in this regard. We found references to the trolley problem in more than half of the 238 reviewed articles. We also investigate tariffs, carbon offsets and fracking. The overall conclusion that can be drawn from our analyses is that industry and academia look at the ethics of AV technology through rather different lenses. The San Jose Mercury News previously reported on Gabriels termination notice. All rights reserved. Conclusion and considerations. Here's How Tesla Solves A Self-Driving Crash Dilemma - Forbes Other issues debated in the literature include ethical design, accountability, human meaningful control, sustainability, and privacy (Aydemir & Dalpiaz, Citation2018; Collingwood, Citation2017; Endsley, Citation2017; Hevelke & Nida-Rmelin, Citation2015; Santoni de Sio & Van den Hoven, Citation2018; Taiebat et al., Citation2018). What has the trolley dilemma ever done for us (and what will it do in the future). Shashua & Shalev-Shwartz, Citation2017). Clearly, our study has its limitations, which we would like to highlight once more at this point. Here we adopt autonomous vehicles when referring to automated driving systems-equipped vehicles (levels 3, 4, or 5 driving automation systems according to the Society of Automotive Engineers International Taxonomy and Definitions for Terms Related to Driving Automation Systems for On-Road Motor Vehicles Committee, Citation2014) for reasons of consistency with the nomenclature favoured by the industry. Musk promotes a YouTube video by two California doctors using misleading statistics to argue against shelter-in-place orders. The theory of Human Meaningful Control, which was introduced above, encompasses a tracing condition that requires the presence of at least one human agent who can bear the moral consequences of the actions of the AV (Santoni de Sio & Van den Hoven, Citation2018). Another Twitter diatribe by Musk wipes about $13bn off Teslas market value, after he declares that he plans to sell almost all physical possessions, including his house(s), and then opines that Teslas stock price is too high imo. Tesla was one of the worst-scoring companies in the 2020 Corporate Human Rights Benchmark (CHRB) report, which examines the human rights and environmental performance of 229 of the world's largest companies. Author Jacob Holzman; Theme Metals; Tesla CEO Elon Musk at the Tesla Design Studio on April 30, . Upon initial screening of the 720 records, 324 duplicates were removed, which meant that 396 records were assessed for eligibility. Tesla defended itself against the allegations in a Feb. 9 blog post, saying that the DFEH lawsuit strains credulity, though its not the first racial controversy the company has endured in recent months: last fall a court ordered the company to pay $137 million to a Black contract worker over turning a blind eye to a racially hostile work environment. An example of a weak trolley case from the literature is an AV which is travelling across a two-lane bridge when a bus in the other lane swerves into its lane and the AV needs to decide either to brake, which would result in a collision with the bus, or to swerve into the other lane, thus hitting the side of the bridge (Goodall, Citation2014a). Quite surprisingly, little is known about the ethical issues in focus by the AV industry. Apple Project Titan is back on again. Tesla scored our best rating for Conflict Minerals Policy and Practice and was a member of the Responsible Mineral Initiative. Below we outline some of these issues. We recall premise (v) above, The best option to assist AVs in managing such extreme traffic situations is x, to clarify that in the AV ethics literature x tends to be proposed within the realm of Machine Ethics. Chinese regulators reprimand Tesla over growing complaints about its Remote and onsite human oversight of AV operations is addressed in the industry reports analysed in this research. I actually spoke with a [supervisor] and he said, Do you have any idea when youre gonna be returning back? and I said, When covid-19 is over. . On Monday 11 May, Elon Musk attempted to fashion himself into a hero of the anti-public-health movement when he dared authorities to arrest him for restarting production at Teslas northern California car plant, in defiance of the local shelter-in-place order. Some vehicle re-touching, to fix flaws in paint on the cars, has been done in a tented "paint hospital" at the Fremont factory, employees previously told CNBC. Therefore, AV companies tend to prioritise these issues, for which technical solutions are presented. Autonomous driving is a complex and disruptive technology which is expected to have a major societal impact. Nonetheless, two Tesla workers say they received termination notices alleging a failure to return to work after they opted to take unpaid leave to protect themselves and their family members when the factory restarted production the second week of May. Last week, Tesla recalled 135,000 vehicles in the United States to deal with a problem with touch screens in its Model S and Model Y cars. All Rights Reserved. Abortion in the U.S.: What the data says | Pew Research Center He is causing untold problems for his workers, she said. Such a machine is commonly known as Autonomous Vehicle (AV)Footnote1 and is expected to yield a multitude of social benefits to traffic safety, mobility, and accessibility (Anderson et al., Citation2014; Fleetwood, Citation2017; Milakis, Van Arem, & Van Wee, Citation2017). groups of search keywords organised to investigate a concept (Schuelke-Leech, Jordan, & Barry, Citation2019), associated with each ethical issue. Six counties in the San Francisco Bay Area become the first locales in the US to order all non-essential businesses to close and require residents to shelter in place. situations that require the AV to make difficult moral choices (Bonnefon et al., Citation2016; Goodall, Citation2014b), but we identified nuanced allusions to this matter. situations in which the AV is required to make a difficult moral choice between actions in traffic which will result in different combinations of lives saved and sacrificed (Awad et al., Citation2018; Bonnefon, Shariff, & Rahwan, Citation2016; Goodall, Citation2016; Lundgren, Citation2020). A positive government relationship is crucial to Tesla in Germany, as the company is in the midst of building its first European plant there, in Grnheide, Brandenburg, just outside of Berlin. Workers periodically sanitize equipment, particularly after breaks, but theres little enforcement and we hardly do that, the worker said. Ethical Consumer expects all electronics companies to discuss the use of potentially hazardous chemicals like Brominated Flame Retardants (BFRs), PVC and phthalates, but Tesla hasnt published policies about any of these. Ethics; Tesla recalls almost a half-million cars over safety issues Defects in some models . The video is removed by YouTube for promoting harmful misinformation, and the doctors are jointly and emphatically condemn[ed] by the American College of Emergency Physicians and the American Academy of Emergency Medicine. General claims have been made about the struggles of companies regarding the ethical issues of AVs but these lack proper substantiation. The ethics of accident-algorithms for self-driving cars: An applied trolley problem? Heres what you need to know about Arcturus. Clients have an impact on Teslas income and are particularly worried about product quality and affordable pricing. (iii) Some of these extreme traffic situations will require AVs to make difficult moral decisions. Teslas stock price drops about 9% following the tweets. Tesla is defending itself in the U.S. and Germany against allegations that it has violated environmental rules and regulations, according to a new financial filing. Then it sent termination notices. 2 Information regarding the companies with a testing permit in California, the reports used in this study, and the lexicons is available in the dataset stored in the 4TU. Can you program ethics into a self-driving car? a parked car) even at that maximal speed - Intel Implementing the RSS Model on NHTSA Pre-Crash ScenariosFootnote4 (Mobileye, Citationn.d. Tesla posts record vehicle deliveries but price cuts fail to supercharge sales, Tesla cuts prices by up to a fifth in US and Europe as EV price war starts, Tesla stock has only plunged to a less ludicrous level as competitors catch up, Elon Musk says he will not sell more Tesla stock for about two years, Elon Musk sells new $3.6bn tranche of Tesla shares, Elon Musk could lose worlds richest person title as Tesla value almost halves. Whereas we can not legitimately consider Nuro's account as an AV moral dilemma, we consider it as yet another indication that companies are aware of convoluted situations akin to weak versions of moral dilemmas. Of course, the shuttle is supposed to stop if an obstruction suddenly appears in its path. A quantitative synopsis of the ethics prioritised by companies with an AV testing permit in California, based on the number of companies that addressed each one of the 21 ethical issues in their reports, can be found in Figure 1. Tesla's employee handbook, which mirrors the style of Musk, was leaked and then published by Business Insider. We trust that our study would provide a useful stepping stone for such follow up research. Tesla sues Alameda county, alleging that the county's continuing shelter-in-place order is unconstitutional. Mark Newman, a senior research analyst at Sanford C. Bernstein & Co., LLC, said in a July 1 interview that a substantial reason companies have begun work on cobalt-free or cobalt-light batteries is the "somewhat shady history" of the metal and difficulty confirming the absence of ethically tainted material in the supply chain.
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