Tesla chief executive Elon Musk has hit out at a software CEO for taking to Twitter and pointing out an issue with the automaker’s Full Self-Driving beta.
James Locke shared two videos to Twitter that show how his Tesla doesn’t correctly make a right turn at a certain intersection with a bike lane. “Unfortunately I have to say I’m still having to intervene to correct #FSDBeta 10.69 in my area. Still lots of work to go,” he added in a tweet.
Musk quickly clapped back at Locke on Twitter, telling him that he shouldn’t complain having previously asked to be included in early releases of Tesla’s Full Self-Driving beta software.
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10.69 is in limited release for a reason. Please do not ask to be included in early beta releases and then complain.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 23, 2022
“10.69 is in limited release for a reason. Please do not ask to be included in early beta releases and then complain,” Musk wrote.
Locke soon apologized for his comments, noting that he thought Musk “wanted the honest feedback” and that he wasn’t “complaining” about the system.
Evidently, that wasn’t enough to appease Musk who added that Locke had previously contacted him directly to be included in the early beta releases, which is limited to approximately 1,000 vehicles and mostly employees.
No. Let me make something clear: James contacted me directly to be included in *early* beta, which is only ~1000 cars, mostly employees.
Early beta explicitly has issues or it would be rolled out widely, so publicly criticizing something he had asked for is wrong.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 24, 2022
“Early beta explicitly has issues or it would be rolled out widely, so publicly criticizing something he had asked for is wrong.”
Musk added that “criticism, public or private, is [only] welcome after we go to wide beta. Early beta has many known issues. The reason we release it to a limited number of cars is to discover unknown issues.”
Tesla’s Full Self-Driving beta has been the subject of criticism in the past. In 2021, it was revealed that Tesla owners participating in the beta were required to sign non-disclosure agreements, telling them to be “selective” about what they publicly share about the program, leading many to suggest the carmaker is actively discouraging public criticism of the system.
In video 2 of 2 you can see how a maintenance vehicle added to this exact same right turn results in an intervention needed to make the right turn. pic.twitter.com/ONnQSrCSdQ
— James Locke (@arctechinc) August 23, 2022