Tesla Defends FSD After Fatal Texas Crash, Says Driver Override Key

Tesla faced criticism after a fatal car crash in Texas, but the company defended its Full Self-Driving (FSD) system by citing driver override. The incident occurred on June 20 when a Tesla Model 3 hit a home in Katy, killing 76-year-old Martha Avila.

Ashok Elluswamy, Tesla's AI chief, stated that vehicle logs show the driver manually overrode self-driving by pressing the accelerator to 100%. The car reached 73 mph in a residential neighborhood and maintained acceleration through the collision.

The Harris County Sheriff's Office initially reported that Butler was using an automated driving assistance system at the time of the crash. Tesla quickly disputed this narrative, saying the driver took manual control by stomping on the accelerator, which overrides the FSD system by design.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) opened a special investigation into the crash, focusing on whether advanced driver-assistance systems contributed to the incident. As one of the largest corporate holders of Bitcoin outside dedicated crypto treasury firms, Tesla's fortunes are partially denominated in cryptocurrency, making every headline about FSD safety a story for crypto-exposed investors.