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Tesla<\/a> Inc. is relying on technical support from Apple<\/a> Inc. as the car company seeks to prove at an upcoming high-profile trial over the safety of its Autopilot system that a Model X<\/a> driver who worked for the iPhone maker was playing a video game on his phone when he crashed and died.<\/p>\n Lawyers for the family of Walter Huang, an engineer who was killed on his commute to work, say his former employer is \u201csecretly\u201d maneuvering to support Tesla\u2019s attempt<\/a> to blame distracted driving for the wreck. A National Transportation Safety Board investigation had failed to reach a definitive conclusion about what Huang was doing in the final seconds before impact.<\/p>\n Based on forensic examinations of Huang\u2019s iPhone, Tesla has said he was playing Sega\u2019s\u00a0Total War: Three Kingdoms<\/em>\u00a0at the time of the crash, though the Huang family\u2019s attorneys say Tesla can\u2019t prove that just because the app was open on his screen.<\/p>\n The two sides are sparring over whether Tesla can call an Apple engineering manager as a witness for a two-month trial set to start next week in state court in San Jose. Apple representatives didn\u2019t respond to a request for comment after regular business hours.<\/p>\n Tesla has prevailed in two previous California trials over Autopilot \u2014 the second one involving a fatal crash \u2014 in which the driver-assistance system was blamed after the vehicles veered off the road.<\/p>\n The company voluntarily recalled 2 million vehicles late last year after the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration found that Autopilot failed to ensure drivers stay attentive. Lawyers representing crash victims and family members who have sued Tesla over accidents say the determination bolsters their claims that the technology is defective and contributed to collisions.<\/p>\n Tesla obtained a sworn statement from an Apple engineering manager, James Harding, who analyzed unencrypted telemetry data on Huang\u2019s phone and said it \u201csuggests possible user interaction, which might be a screen touch or button press.\u201d<\/p>\n The Huang family\u2019s lawyers have countered in a court filing that Tesla purposefully hid its questioning of Harding from them until after pretrial fact-finding deadlines. They are now trying to force Apple to provide more information, and the iPhone maker is pushing back, saying that it shouldn\u2019t have to hand over confidential material.<\/p>\n The NTSB said in a\u00a0report<\/a>\u00a0that the probable cause of Huang\u2019s crash into a barrier along Highway 101 in Mountain View was a combination of \u201climitations\u201d with the Autopilot system and the driver\u2019s \u201clack of response due to distraction likely from a cell phone game application and overreliance\u201d on Autopilot.\u00a0<\/p>\n The report noted that the Model X\u2019s computer detected that Huang\u2019s hands weren\u2019t on the steering wheel just before the crash. Tesla\u2019s owner\u2019s manual says Autopilot users must remain engaged while driving.<\/p>\n The agency also faulted California\u2019s highway department for failing to fix the barrier that Huang\u2019s car collided with after it was damaged in a previous crash.<\/p>\n The case is Huang v. Tesla Inc., 19CV346663, California Superior Court, Santa Clara County (San Jose).<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\nSubscribe to the Eye on AI newsletter to stay abreast of how AI is shaping the future of business. Sign up<\/a> for free.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n