Imagine concluding your latest event showcasing your company’s plans, and you get hit with a lawsuit for it. Tesla has concluded its long-anticipated Robotaxi event that showcased some plans Tesla has for the future, and it was showcased with a lot of new tech from the brand. This included a self-driving taxi, a bus, and an Optimus robot just to name a few. This is Tesla taking a bold step, but Elon might have taken a step in the wrong direction.
Tesla’s whole design revolves around the Cyberpunk and Blade Runner themes, which was what made the Cybertruck so desirable in the beginning. Tesla has further drawn inspiration from this sci-fi world and while people are a bit skeptical about the autonomous plans, they were amazed by the designs. But not everyone seems to be happy with Tesla, and especially its founder Elon Musk.
Tesla Is Sued By Alcon Entertainment
Alcon Entertainment filed a lawsuit against Tesla for copyright infringement shortly after the Robotaxi event. The reason was that Tesla had asked permission to use images from the movie Blade Runner 2049 to help with the promotion at the event. This request was declined as stated by the company. However, some screens were nearly copied via AI creation from the movie and used as part of the presentation. Alcon said the event showcased:
A.I.-created images mirroring scenes from ‘Blade Runner 2049,’ including one featuring a Ryan Gosling look-alike
Companies like this do not take such things lightly, especially when it has to do with copying or stealing intellectual property for public use with consent. Alcon denied permission to use images firstly, because of his quite eccentric media persona, which doesn’t sit well with them at all. Secondly, Alcon had been in talks with Amazon about potentially making a sequel to the last movie, Blade Runner 2099.
Allowing Tesla to use those images might make it seem like Tesla had affiliations with Alcon, which might ruin their planned negotiations. Despite the refusal to use any part of the Blade Runner series as a promotional tool, “He did it anyway” says the lawsuit.
What Happens Next
A lawsuit of this nature might take months or even years before a conclusion can be reached. Tesla did not use the images as requested by Alcon, but the imitated scenes aren’t far off. This is not the first time Tesla or Elon Musk has been in the news for not-so-good behavior. Even the Robotaxi event was more of a concept showcase with barely any technical details.
Some notable voices in the Tech space like Marques Brownlee (MKBHD) asked questions that the Tesla team had almost no good answer to. He said if Tesla could make the Robotaxi with all the features shown for $30,000, he would shave his head – that’s how confident he was that it would never happen, especially at that price.
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