Dan O'Dowd Attacks Musk in Full Page Ad

Investment Analysis Clubs Macro Economic Trends and Risks
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https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/a-tech-founder-too…

A full-page ad in The New York Times described users of Tesla’s Full Self-Driving tech as “crash-test dummies.”
The ad was placed by Dan O’Dowd, founder of Green Hills Software, which develops automotive software.
Responding to the ad, Tesla CEO Elon Musk said: “Green Hills software is a pile of trash.”

A tech founder has placed a full-page advert in The New York Times attacking Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) technology as “the worst software ever sold by a Fortune 500 company.”

Dan O’Dowd, CEO of Green Hills Software, said he placed the ad under the auspices of The Dawn Project, a pressure group, as part of a campaign to ban FSD.

I believe the main problem with FSD is that some Tesla owner believe it is an fully autonomous which it ain’t thus those folks endanger other drivers out on the road. Software technology does not fix human stupidity. So will the system be banned because misuse by a few customers? Should it be banned?

Our society has made laws to stop cellphone use/texting while driving. But notice many folks violating those laws. It hard to modify human behavior.

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I believe the main problem with FSD is that some Tesla owner believe it is an fully autonomous which it ain’t

Just because Musk calls it “Autopilot” and “Full self driving mode”?

I am thinking of packaging some rat poison which I can get cheap as “Goofy’s Finer Chocolates” and, of course, putting some fine print at the bottom of the label saying “May not be edible for most people.”

But notice many folks violating those laws

No law is 100%, but they do tend to encourage most people toward better behavior. And when they don’t (see: Prohibition) they are changed or repealed.

I do think that Tesla has made tens of thousands of people software testers, which would be OK if the test only threatened themselves, but it doesn’t, it potentially affects everyone. There ought to be a better way.

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“I believe the main problem with FSD is that some Tesla owner believe it is an fully autonomous which it ain’t thus those folks endanger other drivers out on the road.”

What does the “full” stand for in Full Self Driving?

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What does the “full” stand for in Full Self Driving?

Exactly the problem. And it’s been over 2 years since he last promised it would be in production and that the robo taxi service was imminent. Musk has done some great things but you simply cannot believe him any longer. Only believe when something is actually shipping, but not a moment before.

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Goofy,

I do think that Tesla has made tens of thousands of people software testers, which would be OK if the test only threatened themselves, but it doesn’t, it potentially affects everyone. There ought to be a better way.

Something like 150,000 people have paid up to $12,000 for FSD. ($12,000 price became effective yesterday)

The genius of Elon Musk is that he’s convinced that many people to pay that kind of money to do his beta testing.

intercst

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tj,

My nephew out of MIT computer sciences age 25 has said to me over Christmas self driving cars are readily available. That is a non issue. Both Musk and O’Dowd are playing nonsense games around who will die. While the death rate will be lower than human driven cars the legal system has no idea who to blame for the deaths that will occur.

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I do think that Tesla has made tens of thousands of people software testers, which would be OK if the test only threatened themselves, but it doesn’t, it potentially affects everyone. There ought to be a better way.

And yet somehow Teslas are the safest cars there are (https://www.tesla.com/VehicleSafetyReport). And there has not been a single crash in cars using the full self driving beta software, while testers have documented many situations where it has saved them from accidents and saved lives. Meanwhile, highly reliable human drivers have caused thousands of accidents, including in Teslas. I think that fact affects “everyone” far more. The carnage on our roads is horrific, and due almost entirely to human incompetence at driving. Every day that continues is the bloody legacy of not achieving vehicular autonomy.

Oddly, you’ll find that people who actually choose to drive using the FSD beta are eager to do so, have to qualify by way of driving safely (as determined by their vehicle), and are generally pleased by the system. There are many, many people on the waiting list. There is huge anticipation for it to improve, and many are pleased and proud to be playing a role in making it better. Nobody wants to stop using it; people just want it to get better as fast as possible.

Personally, I’ve qualified to test the system on only one car. On the other two my safety score isn’t even close. Probably because my wife and daughter are driving them.

And no, there doesn’t seem to be a better way. At least nobody else is making better progress towards autonomous driving everywhere. Slow as it is.

-IGU-

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Dear IGU, WRT your Tesla FSD post - here is what TMF said:
You have no recommendations left for today.

So. Please make these posts earlier in the day, when I still have some recs?

TIA
ralph

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Goofy,
Other than failed emotions do you know anything major about tech? Or law? Or medicine? Or economics?

Um, let’s see. Tech? I bought AOL in 1994 (sold 1999) after touring their startup pod at the Chicago Tribune Tower. If you mean “do I know tech”, yes, I programmed in FORTRAN in 1965 on a mainframe from Bethlehem Steel, and wrote a game and a database manager for the Apple ][ in 1982. Not published. Ran a string of Macs from my house over a T-1 (24 lines) for a publishing venture in 1995, and sold it to a Chicago based media company. I have visited the AT&T nuclear-proof bunker for the New England interconnect, and been on the Motorola team for deploying InMarSat in-cabin live television for American Airlines. So yeah, I’m kind of comfortable around it.

Or law? Or medicine?

Um, what else? Oh, law? Not much. Did some pre-law in college, hated it, dropped it.
Medicine? Not really. Had 4 major operations, my sister is a Doctor, her husband too. Made a bunch oh several pharma stocks over the years, at the moment I think the only one in the portfolio is ABBV, but none of that counts, probably.

Or economics?

Did two years of that, didn’t care for that either. Took me 5 years to get through college by cobbling together whatever courses they would count from my meandering (I started as a potential Mechanical Engineer) towards a degree which I never used. Did take some executive level Economics at Wharton thanks to Westinghouse when I worked in Pittsburgh. Traveled the world with their Quality Program looking at factories and businesses from Ireland to Disney; got to know some great people at Westinghouse Nuclear (where the program began.)

Anything else you’d like to know? I was a landlord for 40 years and owed a couple of small businesses, as well as running businesses for Westinghouse in Boston, Chicago, and Pittsburgh. I was born in Michael Moore’s Flint, Michigan, raised in California and NJ. I’m cute, tall, and a lousy dancer. I like chocolate. Is this getting too personal?

Just calling people idiots is not a great way to go through life

I don’t call “people” idiots. I only call idiots idiots.

I am not imnpressed

Good to know. If that ever becomes important to me I will be sure to inform you.

The last two presidents have whittled down how much business we do with China. Now our companies over there will not be operating as much, and might as well come home to build more factories.

Hmmm. China exports to the US in

2009: $296 billion
2010: $365 billion
2011: $398 billion
2012: $425 billion
2013: $440 billion
2014: $468 billion
2015: $483 billion
2016: $462 billion
2017: $505 billion
2018: $539 billion
2019: $451 billion
2020: $435 billion *pandemic
2021: figures not on chart
https://www.statista.com/statistics/187675/volume-of-us-impo…

Trade with China increased almost every year until 2019, and 2020 was the pandemic and anomalous, in my view. I suspect the disruption in supply chains will have a lot more to do with returning factories to America than some short term trade war will. I’m quite sure every company - even if this supply chain fiasco doesn’t affect them at the moment - is busy examining how to source crucial materials locally, but then what do I know?

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HOT off the press!

TMF - Tesla Merger!

Fool Self Driving!

The Captain

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The question in the OP was basically asking how China’s possible implosion will effect Wall Street?

Generally, affect is a verb and effect is a noun. Many 16 year old girls would know that.

The OP does not mention China, and so there must be some cross posting going on here. This thread is about self-driving car software development and Tesla.

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