Woman gives birth in traffic jam with help from "self-driving" car

33-year-old Yiran Sherry of Philadelphia was taking her three-year-old son Rafa to preschool when her water broke. Then, as the Philadelphia Inquirer regales:

Lancaster Avenue was choked with rush-hour traffic. Keating [Sherry, her husband] put the car on autopilot, which meant he could keep his left hand lightly on the wheel while glancing back to check on Rafa and swiveling to tend to his wife.

Yiran's contractions were one minute apart. "She was squeezing my hand to the point where I thought she was going to shatter it," Keating says. "I was [saying to] Yiran: OK, focus on your breathing. That was advice to myself, as well. My adrenaline was pumping. I said, 'Rafa, everything's fine. Your baby sister is arriving.' "

The 20-minute drive from Wayne to Paoli felt like two hours; each time Yiran caught her breath between contractions, she glanced at the GPS to clock their progress. And then, just as they pulled up to the hospital, she whispered, "Oh, my God, Keating. She's out."

And that's how Maeve Lily Sherry, born September 9, 2021, became the first known baby to be born in a Tesla set on autopilot.

The Inquirer article also goes into more detail about the couple's courtship, and how much they enjoy their car, if that's something you're interested in. Of course, as The Guardian notes:

The baby's delivery is a good news story for Tesla, which has been plagued by bad publicity over safety concerns and workplace abuse.

This week a taxi company in Paris discontinued use of Tesla Model 3 cars after a fatal crash. Tesla previously faced a lawsuit in Florida over an accident involving the death of a teenager in a Model S in 2019.

But, uhh, yay babies?

Long but eventful drive to the hospital [Anndee Hochman / The Philadelphia Inquirer]

Baby driver: Philadelphia woman gives birth in front seat of Tesla on autopilot [Richard Luscombe / The Guardian]