Did the Tesla Model X save this man’s life?

The ability of these autonomous vehicles was brought into question following a fatal crash in July.

While much negative focus has been put on the technology following this incident, the autopilot feature has been safe and effective for the most part.

Furthermore, an event this week has proved Tesla’s Autopilot feature can actually be extremely beneficial in emergency situations.

Joshua Neally had purchased a Model X and had grown to cautiously trust the Autopilot feature during his 45 minute commute to work in Missouri.

“I’m not a daredevil,” he toldSlate. “I promised my wife I’d always be paying attention.”

The lawyer was only 8km from his office when he felt a pain in his abdomen.

He immediately called his wife and they decided it was best he go to the emergency room, this is one of the last moments of the drive he remembered.

The 37-year-old curled over in pain in the driver’s seat, as the vehicle’s software navigated itself to a hospital just off an exit ramp, some 32km down the highway.

Doctors later told Mr Neally he was lucky to survive, as he had suffered a pulmonary embolism — a potentially fatal obstruction of a blood vessel in his lung.

While Mr Neally admits he could have pulled over and called an ambulance, he believes he was able to reach the hospital quicker using Autopilot.

The past few months have shown Autopilot can be fatal if used improperly, yet it also has the potential to save lives as seen in this case.

How the technology will be viewed in the future is yet to be determined, but it’s fairly safe to assume it will only get safer with time.