Here's your Forbes Daily Briefing for Thursday, August 21st.

Today on Forbes, Elon Musk's self-driving Tesla lies for finally catching up to him.

A federal judge in San Francisco just green-lit a class-action lawsuit by Tesla owners to sue the carmaker for exaggerated claims by CEO Elon Musk and

the company about the self-driving capability of its electric vehicles that stretch all the way back

to 2016. It's the latest blow to plans by the world's richest person to reposition Tesla

as a leader in artificial intelligence and autonomous driving

amid a dramatic slowdown in its EV sales.

Nine years ago, Elon Musk told reporters that Tesla was taking a bold leap into the future

by equipping its electric lineup with all the tech it would ever need

to one day operate as truly autonomous vehicles.

Musk said, quote,

the full autonomy hardware suite will be standard on all vehicles Tesla makes from here on out.

When fully utilized at some later date, as the AI-enabled software was refined,

an array of digital cameras, ultrasonic sensors, and radar would give Tesla's

full, so-called level 5, autonomy, a designation indicating a robotic ability to drive under

all conditions.

Problem is, it wasn't true then, and still isn't.

From hyperloups to solar roofs to trillion-dollar savings from federal budget cuts

by Doge, Musk has developed a reputation for excessive boasts and telling outright whoppers.

For years, that habit hasn't been a big problem for his companies, his image, or wealth,

but it's shaping up to be one for Tesla, already stung by a 13%

drop in its global EV sales in the first half of 2025.

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