One person died and nine others were seriously injured after a self-driving test car veered into oncoming traffic, German police said.
The electric BMW iX, carrying five people, including a small child, hit a Mercedes van head-on, killing one of its passengers, who was 33.
The initial collision sparked a series of further collisions involving two more vehicles, but it is unclear if it was manually operated.
A police spokesman in the southwestern city of Reutlingen said the BMW left its lane on Monday at a bend in the road.
He smashed an oncoming Citroen before hitting the Mercedes.
The 70-year-old driver of the Citroen lost control of her car and crashed into another vehicle, which went off the road and burst into flames.
He had two people on board.
The BMW iX had five people on board when it clipped a falling Citroen and crashed into a Mercedes van (Image: AP)
Reutlingen police spokesman Michael Schaal said four rescue helicopters were involved in the medical response and the injured were taken to several area hospitals.
They included the 43-year-old BMW driver, three adults aged 31, 42 and 47 and an 18-month-old child, who were all in the test vehicle.
Mr Schaal said police had not yet had a chance to interview those involved in the crash.
It is unclear whether the person behind the wheel of the BMW test car was actively driving the vehicle at the time of the crash or was traveling autonomously, the spokesman said.
BMW confirmed that one of its test vehicles was involved in a crash near Reutlingen and denied that the vehicle was fully autonomous.
Hotel fire that killed couple started when porter put ashes in cupboard
“The vehicle features a level two driver assistance system already built into production vehicles today that can support the driver on demand,” the company said.
“With level two vehicles, the driver always retains responsibility.”
BMW added that the vehicle had to be marked as a test car for data protection purposes because it was recording video.
“We are in the process of investigating the exact circumstances (of the crash),” the company added.
“Of course we are in close contact with the authorities.”
Do you have a story? Contact our news team by emailing us at [email protected] Or you can submit your videos and photos here.
For more stories like this, check out our news page.
Follow Metro.co.uk on Twitter and Facebook for the latest news updates. Now you can also receive Metro.co.uk articles direct to your device. Sign up for our daily push notifications here.
MORE: Flash flooding disrupts communities with more downpours tomorrow
