DON'T MISS: NHTSA to investigate Tesla Model S Autopilot crash that killed driver The story appeared a few days ago in a broader discussion of these issues in Slate, with the clever title, "Code is my copilot." Right below the title, it asked: "Tesla insists its controversial autopilot software is saving lives. Can it convince the rest of us?" The episode was simple but dramatic: On July 26, Joshua Neally was driving his week-old Tesla Model X electric utility vehicle home from work in Missouri. He began to suffer sudden chest pains, of an intensity he described as, "like a steel pole through my chest." After calling his wife, he agreed to go to the nearest emergency room because it would be faster than waiting for an ambulance. And he apparently programmed that destination into the Tesla's Autopilot beta software. Neally says he doesn't remember a lot of the trip, but the car navigated 20 miles of highway for him and conducted itself down the correct off-ramp to the hospital. He was able to park the car, he recalls, and was promptly treated in the emergency room. As the article notes, Neally "wonders whether, without Autopilot, he might have lost control of the car and ... become a deadly projectile when those first convulsions struck." It also notes that the situation is unusual, to say the least. And Neally says he pays attention while behind the wheel with Autopilot engaged, not doing hands-free activities that would distract him—though he also admits he "sometimes checks email or sends text messages on [the] phone." The promise of self-driving cars has long been theoretical, with rosy visions of autonomous transportation for elderly people, the disabled, and children and teens below driving age. The Neally case offers a practical example of the potential benefits.