I expect an autopilot could deal with that situation much better than a human as well. It should be able to predict if the car behind won't stop. Certainly better than a human driver could (if the human would even notice the car coming from behind with that happening in front). Then, assuming there is some space open in front, as there was in this case, it could accelerate to avoid the collision from behind. Now I'm curious whether Tesla's autopilot is already programmed to do this.
These were not on Autopilot, but human-operated maneuvers.
Why would Autopilot have a warning for frontal collisions but not for rear collisions? And why would Autopilot be speed-limited and all that if it was able to use launch mode to avoid a rear collision?
I think the consequences of this would be too significant for Tesla to silently implement. Given an unavoidable rear crash, it could cause a multi-car accident and increase the collision's severity relative to braking.
I was discussing the case of an avoidable rear crash. Vehicle approaching from rear, either not beginning to slow by a minimum expected distance, or slowing, but with apparently insufficient space to come to a stop. Space in front, allowing for safe acceleration. Seems logical to move out of the way, and I don't see any reason why it would increase the chances of a multi-car accident.
Sometimes it would misjudge an avoidable crash, though. When
an accident includes a vehicle in front, the middle car is oftentimes liable for following too closely. It might seem logical, but that "safe acceleration" could cause a pileup, and push it into an intersection for example.
