A robot went rogue at Tesla’s Giga Texas factory in Austin, Texas seriously injuring a software engineer. The robot malfunctioned while the engineer was programming software for robots tasked with cutting car parts from freshly cast aluminium.
The incident dates back to two years ago and was revealed in a 2021 injury report. The robot reportedly pinned the engineer and inflicted wounds on his back and arm by sinking its claws and leaving a trail of blood on the factory floor.
As per the report, while two of the robots were disabled, a third was inadvertently left active leading to the attack. The injured engineer reportedly suffered an open wound on his left hand.
Despite the severity of the incident, the engineer did not take any time off work. The injury report was filed with federal and Travic County health authorities detailed the injuries as a “laceration, cut or open wound.”
Tesla has not given a comment on the matter yet. As per reports, safety lapses have not been uncommon at the facility although no other robot-related injuries have been reported at the Texas factory in 2021 or 2022.
As per reports, injury reports submitted to the US Occupational Safety and Health Administration reveal a high injury rate at Giga Texas.
Nearly one in 21 workers have been injured last year. The median injury rate is one of 30 workers in the automotive industry.
As per reports, current and former Tesla workers have alleged that the company often compromises on construction, maintenance and operations. An explosion was also reported in 2022.