Roughly two million Tesla automobiles are being recalled from American roads.

Following a two-year investigation by US safety authorities into over 1,000 incidents using the Autopilot technology, Tesla is limiting its use by recalling almost all 2 million vehicles on US roads.When it comes to selling Tesla automobiles to customers who are ready to pay more for the option to have their cars drive themselves, the limits on Autopilot are a major setback.According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, drivers may have a false sense of security while using the Autopilot system, and it's easy to abuse in cases where Tesla's technology can't properly handle the road. More alerts will be sent to Tesla owners via over-the-air software updates when the "Autosteer" component of Autopilot is engaged and the driver is not paying attention to the road. According to a statement from the NHTSA, these messages will serve as a reminder for drivers to maintain complete focus on the road and their hands-on wheel operation.After the recall, Teslas equipped with Autosteer will detect when the driver isn't paying attention, when the car is getting close to traffic controls, or when the vehicle is off the highway and Autosteer isn't enough to control it. This may result in the feature being disabled.The NHTSA posted a letter to Tesla informing them of the recall. The letter stated that Tesla had agreed to the software update, which will limit the use of the Autosteer feature. The update will take effect on Tuesday. If the driver repeatedly fails to demonstrate that they are ready to resume control of the car while it is on, it will limit the feature's use.Autopilot and Tesla's other driver-assist technologies, such as "full self-driving," have been getting a lot of attention since the company claims they make driving safer than in vehicles driven by people alone. In contrast, for over two years, the NHTSA has investigated complaints of accidents involving the Autopilot and its Autosteer feature.The recall comes two days after a comprehensive study was published by the Washington Post that uncovered at least eight major incidents, including several deaths, in which the autopilot mode should not have been enabled in the first place.Tesla’s owner's manual says: “Autosteer is intended for use only on highways and limited-access roads with a fully attentive driver.” But the business has promoted the idea that its driver assistance capabilities enable vehicles to safely make most driving choices even away from highways.A NHTSA review, however, has revealed several incidents over the last few years that demonstrate that these capabilities do not live up to their labels of autopilot and full self-driving.The safety authority in its letter to Tesla claimed that “in certain circumstances when Autosteer is engaged, the prominence and scope of the feature’s controls may not be sufficient to prevent driver misuse [of the feature]."” It noted that when drivers are not completely engaged and ready to take control of the automobile, “there may be an increased risk of a crash.”In addition to the software upgrades, Tesla will deliver letters to vehicle owners advising them of the change.A history of autopilot problemsThis is not the first time the NHTSA has urged Tesla to make modifications to its autopilot or full self-driving functions after discovering the technologies created safety risks.Tesla recalled all 363,000 US vehicles on the road with its FSD feature in February after finding cars operating with the feature would violate traffic laws, including "traveling straight through an intersection while in a turn-only lane, entering a stop sign-controlled intersection without coming to a complete stop, or proceeding into an intersection during a steady yellow traffic signal without due caution."And NHTSA and the National Transportation Safety Board have been examining collisions involving Tesla cars employing different driver assist technologies, including a sequence of crashes with emergency vehicles on the site of prior accidents.Tesla is not the only carmaker delivering driver assistance technology billed as "self-driving." And it is not the only one to run into safety issues. Recently, General Motors’ Cruise business halted its driverless taxi service statewide after California officials revoked its permission to operate the technology there following an accident.However, since it advertises the titles Autopilot and Full Self-Driving, Tesla has placed more emphasis on self-driving than rivals. It costs buyers $6,000 for vehicles with what it terms "enhanced autopilot" and $12,000 for the FSD option.Many people who paid more for such capabilities have told CNN they believe the features are not worth the extra money. Although the features have gained acceptance among some owners, reports of catastrophic accidents and fatalities by police and safety officials may hinder Tesla's attempts to sell the vehicles and their pricey features.Autopilot’s value to TeslaTesla is already the most valuable manufacturer in the world, by far, despite having a fraction of the sales of numerous established automakers such as Toyota, Volkswagen, General Motors, Ford, and Stellantis.Investors rely on estimates of future sales growth as well as the value of its software in generating those stock values. CEO Elon Musk has claimed that the company's investment in artificial intelligence, its use in both self-driving cars, and its aspirations for humanoid robots are critical to its present and future value.“In the long term, I think, it has the potential to make Tesla the most valuable company in the world by far,” Musk said in October on a call with Wall Street analysts. “If you have fully autonomous cars at scale and fully autonomous humanoid robots that are truly useful, it’s not clear what the limit is.”