The Dawn Project, founded by competing software company CEO Dan O’Dowd, tackled Tesla for the second year in a row with a controversial Super Bowl ad aimed squarely at denouncing the electric vehicle manufacturer’s driver-assist feature.
Two ads aired Sunday night that highlighted footage of alleged Tesla incidents, including where the driver-assist feature was supposedly being used, pushing the narrative that such events could have been a result of the technology. The commercials, funded by the organization to the tune of $552,000, urged viewers to boycott Tesla to ensure family safety.
This is not the first time The Dawn Project has taken on Tesla. In 2021, an ad showing a vehicle using Tesla’s driver-assist feature running over a child-sized dummy was part of their Super Bowl campaign. Dan O’Dowd expressed the belief that the best way to force Tesla to address concerns is by denying their funding, reaching out to consumers with one compelling argument: “When you buy a new Tesla, you are financing and enabling Elon Musk to put a dangerous, unfinished product on our public roads.”
It’s critical to note that O’Dowd’s company, Green Hills Software, has vested interests in the development of its automated driving systems, which may suggest a competitive motive behind his actions. In fact, he attempted to run for Senate to ban Tesla’s Autopilot and FSD features in 2022 but was unsuccessful.
In response to ongoing concerns, including from the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration, Tesla has issued over-the-air updates for its Full Self-Driving (FSD) feature, which comes at an additional cost of $12,000 or $199 per month. Despite the controversy, Tesla insists that its Autopilot and FSD functions are still in beta mode and require an attentive, licensed driver to oversee operations at all times.
FR 
EN 
DE 
RU