The growth of tesla It has not only been marked by innovation and expectations, but also by a series of controversies that today take their toll.
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The company led by Elon Musk is going through one of its most complex moments in court, with dozens of open cases that point directly to its star technology, autopilot and fully autonomous driving.
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A recent report put specific figures on the table and the outlook is not minor. The company accumulates at least 21 active lawsuits and, in the worst scenario, the economic impact could exceed the $14.5 billion dollars. This is not a single problem, but rather several open fronts ranging from fatal accidents to accusations of false advertising.
Accidents, promises and questions
One of the most delicate areas has to do with accidents linked to the Autopilot system and the FSD package. This category alone could represent between $1,000 and $5,000 million in compensationdepending on how the cases evolve.
Added to this are lawsuits related to the robotaxis project, which have led to accusations of stock fraud with possible costs close to $5,000 million dollars. Claims of racial discrimination also appear at the Fremont plant, where There are nearly 900 complaints that could involve between $200 and $1.2 billion dollars.
The list continues with conflicts over unexpected braking, regulatory investigations and disputes in Europe over privacy issues linked to surveillance functions in vehicles.
A failure that changed the course
For a time, Tesla’s defense rested on a fairly simple idea. His lawyers argued that Elon Musk’s statements about autonomous driving were only optimistic expressions, not literal.. That strategy worked in some courts, but was no longer effective after a key ruling.
In 2025, a federal jury in Miami held Tesla partially responsible for a fatal accident that occurred years earlier. The company was found 33 percent at fault and ordered to pay $243 million dollarsof which $200 million dollars corresponded to punitive damages.
The case left phrases that resonated strongly in the industry. “A beta test that no one signed up for”stated the victims’ lawyer, marking a before and after in the public perception of these technologies.
Silent agreements and strategy under review
Since that verdict, Tesla opted for a more discreet approach. The company has closed several out-of-court settlements in similar casespreventing new lawsuits from further exposing its technology and communication.
This change also reflects an internal transformation. The criminal team, which once adopted an aggressive stance, is now moving more in containment mode, trying to reduce damage instead of confronting each case.
What’s coming could be even more complex
The real challenge for Tesla could lie in what hasn’t been resolved yet. Many of the current cases correspond to incidents that occurred between 2018 and 2020, but the expansion of the FSD system in later years multiplies the risk.
Between 2021 and 2025hundreds of thousands of vehicles incorporated these functions. The accidents linked to that period are still being analyzed and could lead to new lawsuits. It is estimated that there are between 50 and 60 fatal cases associated with these technologies, with possible compensation ranging from $100 to $300 million dollars per case.
Furthermore, there is another front that does not go unnoticed. A class action lawsuit in California could force Tesla to refund customers who purchased the FSD system. Each user could recover between $5,000 and $15,000 dollarswhich adds additional pressure considering the number of vehicles involved.
In parallel, uncertainty persists over millions of cars equipped with hardware that may not deliver on the original promises of autonomous driving. And while authorities question the use of that term, the company maintains its position and continues to defend its vision.
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