Report: ‘Safety’ Monitor in Crashed Self-Driving Uber Car Was Streaming Hulu

The safety monitor in a self-driving Uber car was streaming The Voice on Hulu just before it crashed, according to a report.

Citing a police report, Reuters claimed that the driver, Rafaela Vasquez, “was distracted and streaming a television show on her phone right up until about the time of a fatal accident in March,” with police describing the crash as “entirely avoidable.”

Vasquez “repeatedly looked down and not at the road, glancing up just a half second before the car hit 49-year-old Elaine Herzberg, who was crossing the street at night,” and was reportedly streaming The Voice for 42 minutes, only ending the program at the time of the crash, which killed the pedestrian.

Vasquez reportedly saw Herzberg six seconds before the crash, however, she failed to use the emergency brakes.

Following the crash, Uber halted their self-driving car tests, and increased the number of self-driving car crash simulations.