Key takeaways:
- The Dawn Project is using an expensive Super Bowl ad to draw attention to the potential threat to life and limb posed by Tesla vehicles’ “Full Self-Driving” system.
- The ad shows a Tesla Model 3 running over a child-sized dummy on a school crosswalk, and then a fake baby in a stroller, in a series of tests by the Dawn Project.
- The ad is part of a larger trend of Super Bowl ads this year that are taking a more serious tone, and is a bold move to draw attention to the potential dangers of Tesla’s self-driving technology.
A little-known consumer advocacy group is making a big statement this Super Bowl Sunday with an expensive ad. The Dawn Project is using the ad to draw attention to what it sees as the potential threat to life and limb posed by Tesla vehicles’ “Full Self-Driving” system.
The ad shows a Tesla Model 3, allegedly with the Full Self-Driving mode turned on, running over a child-sized dummy on a school crosswalk, and then a fake baby in a stroller, in a series of tests by the Dawn Project. The nonprofit group claims the software can cause the electric car maker’s vehicles to swerve into oncoming traffic or drive on the wrong side of the road.
The Dawn Project is calling out Tesla for allegedly knowing for more than six months that its Full Self-Driving software will run down a child in a crosswalk, along with hundreds of other potential dangers. The ad claims that Tesla’s self-driving technology is built on “woefully inept engineering” that poses a treat to pedestrians and drivers.
The ad is part of a larger trend of Super Bowl ads this year that are taking a more serious tone. Ad Age editor Jeanine Poggi commented on the trend, saying that it is a reflection of the current state of the world.
The Dawn Project’s ad is a bold move to draw attention to the potential dangers of Tesla’s self-driving technology. It remains to be seen if the ad will have the desired effect, or if it will be lost in the shuffle of other Super Bowl ads.
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