_posts/2018-11-12-buying-a-tesla-also-means-being-a-beta-tester-for-new-driverless-tech-without-even-knowing-it.markdown
---
title: Buying a Tesla Also Means Being a Beta Tester for New Driverless Tech Without
Even Knowing It
date: 2018-11-12 09:17:00 -06:00
tags:
- tech
- transportation
excerpt: Tesla is beta testing some pretty cool features with drivers.
link_url: https://www.wired.com/story/tesla-navigate-on-autopilot/
---
Jack Stewart writing for *Wired*:
> Every Tesla built since the end of 2016 comes with eight cameras around the car, a radar behind the front bumper, and ultrasonic proximity sensors embedded into the front and back bumpers.
>
> …
>
> The big upside for Tesla is data gathering. The automaker can run its software in “shadow mode” on all those cars, to test new features against real roads, without the drivers ever being aware. The fleet of Tesla vehicles—[growing at around 30,000 cars per month now](https://www.wired.com/story/tesla-q3-production-numbers/)—scoops up data about the environment and driver behavior, on a wide scale, at speed.
Reading about technology like this gets me excited for the future of transportation. In fact, I’m amazed some of it already exists in my lifetime.
I guess it comes down to this: with how much disolusionment the internet and other technology has brought me, <mark>it’s nice to read a tech story where the future actually looks bright.</mark>