A Mercedes-Benz magazine ad this summer described a new sedan as a “self-driving car from a very self-driven company.” On television, the Daimler AG luxury brand showed a prototype autonomous car with passengers facing one another before cutting to a current vehicle with limited automatic steering. “Is the world truly ready for a vehicle that can drive itself?” asked the television commercial’s narrator, adding that the future had...
Mercedes recently had to pull an advertising campaign which claimed one its new sedans was a self-driving car, despite the fact that its self-driving capabilities were limited to lane changing and brake assistance. The campaign ended soon after consumer advocates wrote the head of the Federal Trade Commission voicing concerns that the vehicle was being falsely represented as a driverless car. Tesla has had a well-publicised similar experience which led to the death of a driver using it’s “Autopilot” technology, and as a result automakers are encountering growing concerns about misleading customers and giving them a false sense of security regarding “self-driving” capabilities. “These companies are in an arms race to get the technology out there and demonstrate they have superior engineering,” a lawyer stated to the WSJ, “…There is a lot of potential for misuses and misunderstanding.”