Tesla settles suit over fatal crash blamed on Autopilot system

Tesla reached a settlement on the eve of its highest-profile trial yet over a crash blamed on Autopilot, the driver-assistance system Mr Elon Musk has billed as crucial to his pursuit of self-driving cars, according to court filings.

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Terms of the settlement were not disclosed in filings made public on April 8 in state court in San Jose, California.

The trial that was set to kick off this week centred on Mr Walter Huang, a 38-year-old Apple engineer who was killed on the way to work in 2018 when his Model X veered off the highway and slammed into a roadside barrier at about 110kmh.

A US federal safety agency's investigation of the accident found that Mr Huang was probably distracted with a video game app on his phone, while also pointing to "limitations" with the Autopilot system.

The electric vehicle maker prevailed in two previous trials in California after juries found the accidents, one fatal and one not, were due to driver error rather than the company's technology.

Each of the trials - and more that are scheduled in coming months in California and Florida - clash with Mr Musk's mantra that Teslas are the safest cars ever made.