_Incident · Injury_

# Tesla and FANUC sued for $51M after a factory robot arm struck a technician unconscious at Fremont (2023)

Canonical ID: `9c3adec0-3f44-4482-8ffc-afd2eb3ce5df`

- **Occurred:** 2023-07-22
- **Kind:** `injury`
- **Status (derived):** active
- **Company:** [Tesla](/companies/tesla.md) (id: `bde7c8a1-5d35-449d-93b0-2ac8e4601c16`)

On July 22 2023 at Tesla's Fremont, California plant, robotics technician Peter Hinterdobler was helping disassemble a FANUC industrial robot when the arm, with the force of an ~8,000-lb counterbalance, suddenly struck him, throwing him to the floor and knocking him unconscious. He filed a $51M suit against Tesla and FANUC. A maintenance-phase struck-by injury, the dominant industrial-robot hazard pattern.

## Sources (1)

1. **Manufacturing Dive** · https://www.manufacturingdive.com/news/former-factory-worker-sues-tesla-fanuc-robotic-arm-unconscious-51-million/761123/

## Common questions

### What happened in Tesla and FANUC sued for $51M after a factory robot arm struck a technician unconscious at Fremont (2023)?

On July 22 2023 at Tesla's Fremont, California plant, robotics technician Peter Hinterdobler was helping disassemble a FANUC industrial robot when the arm, with the force of an ~8,000-lb counterbalance, suddenly struck him, throwing him to the floor and knocking him unconscious. He filed a $51M suit against Tesla and FANUC. A maintenance-phase struck-by injury, the dominant industrial-robot hazard pattern.

### When did this incident occur?

The incident is recorded as occurring on July 22, 2023 on the DEPLOY registry. The date reflects the underlying real-world event, not the registry record's creation date.

### Who was involved in Tesla and FANUC sued for $51M after a factory robot arm struck a technician unconscious at Fremont (2023)?

The incident is recorded as involving Tesla on the DEPLOY registry. No specific robot model is linked to this incident in the registry.

### Has anyone responded to Tesla and FANUC sued for $51M after a factory robot arm struck a technician unconscious at Fremont (2023)?

No responses to this incident are recorded on the DEPLOY registry. Operators, manufacturers, or affected parties can submit responses to the editorial team; absence is not a guarantee no response was issued.

### What is the current status of Tesla and FANUC sued for $51M after a factory robot arm struck a technician unconscious at Fremont (2023)?

This incident is an active record on the DEPLOY registry; no retraction or correction has been issued.


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