Elon Musk is once again at the center of an investigation by a U.S. regulator over potentially inappropriate claims. The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is investigating the Tesla CEO’s role in shaping the company’s claims about its vehicles’ ability to drive themselves.
The new investigation is part of an ongoing probe into the automaker’s statements about the abilities of Autopilot, its advanced driving assistance system, reports Bloomberg, citing a source with knowledge of the case who asked not to be named because they were discussing aspects of the investigation that have not yet been disclosed.
The agency will look to determine whether Musk made inappropriate forward-looking statements. As the company’s CEO, his words have particular importance under SEC rules.
Read: Elon Musk Oversaw The Faked 2016 Autopilot Video Claims New Report
The specific reason that the SEC is now looking into Musk’s statements was not made clear, but it follows reports that the CEO personally oversaw the creation of a video that Tesla’s director of Autopilot, Ashok Elluswamy, admitted in court had been staged.
In emails discovered by Bloomberg, Musk wrote in 2016 that it was okay to fake the “FSD” demonstration video since “this is what the car *will* be able to do,” adding that the video was not a promise that “it can do this upon receipt.”
Just the latest investigation into Musk’s conduct, he and Tesla are facing scrutiny from multiple sides. In addition to other SEC investigations, the U.S. Justice Department is also looking into whether the automaker’s comments about its advanced driver assistance systems are misleading.
In addition, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is investigating whether the system itself is safe, looking both at how it interacts with emergency vehicles on the road, and at phantom braking events. Meanwhile, Consumer Reports has updated its take on the Autopilot system, rating it as worse than a number of competitors’, such as Ford and GM.
