US Secretary of Transportation states the obvious: Don't use the Apple Vision Pro while driving
Even if it's only for 30 or 40 seconds, it's a bad idea.
Ever since the Vision Pro went on sale last week, Apple's pricey AR/VR headset has been spotted in all sorts of unusual places: from the gym to airplanes and everywhere in between. However, after one owner was seen wearing it while driving down the highway in a Tesla Cybertruck, US Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg issued a warning reminding people to use some common sense.
In a post on X alongside a snippet from the original video, Buttigieg reiterated that "ALL advanced driver assistance systems available today require the human driver to be in control and fully engaged in the driving task at all times." Similarly, Apple's headset ships with multiple warnings advising users not to use it while "operating a moving vehicle" or in "any other situations requiring attention to safety."
Reminder—ALL advanced driver assistance systems available today require the human driver to be in control and fully engaged in the driving task at all times. pic.twitter.com/OpPy36mOgC
— Secretary Pete Buttigieg (@SecretaryPete) February 5, 2024
Following Secretary Buttigieg's response, the creator of the video, Dante Lentini, told Gizmodo that the footage was a "skit" made with friends and that the headset was only worn for 30 to 40 seconds while driving. Additionally, Lentini says footage suggesting that he got arrested for his prank was staged. But what makes the video even more irresponsible is that while the Cybertruck comes with Tesla's Autopilot system as standard, that feature has yet to be activated for the first wave of Founder's Edition vehicles. That means Lentini was going down the highway while wearing a headset without the help of any advanced driver-assistance systems.
In some respects, it's a bit sad that Buttigieg's warning even needs to be said. However, given the massive amounts of hype and pre-orders nearing 200,000 units, it was probably only a matter of time until someone got caught driving while wearing Apple's pricey headset.