Robot-Driven Vehicle Accused of “Negligent Driving” by Motorcyclist
Chase Stallo

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Robot-Driven Vehicle Accused of “Negligent Driving” by Motorcyclist

In one of the first suits involving an autonomous vehicle, a California motorcyclist has filed a lawsuit against General Motors, accusing one the manufacturer’s robot-operated vehicles of “negligent driving,” according to a report in the Washington Post.

The case stems from a crash last month, in which Oscar Nilsson claims he was traveling down a San Francisco street when a Cruise AV aborted a lane change and swerved into his lane. According to the suit filed in U.S. District Court in San Francisco this week, the car struck him, knocking him to the ground and left him injured and unable to work.

Nilsson’s suit is seeking damages exceeding $75,000. A San Francisco Police Department report puts the blame on Nilsson, according to the Washington Post. According to the report, Nilsson tried to pass a vehicle before it was safe.

“As the Cruise AV was re-centering itself in the lane, a motorcycle that had just lane-split between two vehicles in the center and right lanes moved into the center lane, glanced the side of the Cruise AV, wobbled and fell over,” the report claims.

“The motorcyclist was determined to be at fault for attempting to overtake and pass another vehicle on the right under conditions that did not permit that movement in safety,” the report says.

You can read more about this case—and robots' attempts at taking over the world—here.