London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Jul 10, 2025

Baby driver: Philadelphia woman gives birth in front seat of Tesla on autopilot

Baby driver: Philadelphia woman gives birth in front seat of Tesla on autopilot

Yiran Sherry’s waters broke while the family was stuck in traffic, leading to what is believed to be the world’s first ‘Tesla baby’

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

A Philadelphia mother has given birth to what is believed to be the world’s first Tesla baby: an infant delivered in the front seat of an electric smart car while it was driving on autopilot.

The remarkable delivery, reported by the Philadelphia Inquirer, took place in September while Yiran Sherry, 33, and her husband Keating Sherry, 34, were taking their three-year-old son Rafa to pre-school.

Yiran Sherry’s waters broke while the family was stuck in traffic. With contractions increasing rapidly and traffic barely moving, the couple realized they were not going to make it in time.

Keating Sherry placed the vehicle on autopilot after setting the navigation system to the hospital, 20 minutes away in the western suburb of Paoli.

He said he laid one hand gently on the car’s steering wheel as he attended to his wife.

“She was squeezing my hand to the point where I thought she was going to shatter it,” Keating Sherry told the Inquirer. “I was [saying] ‘Yiran, OK, focus on your breathing.’ That was advice to myself, as well. My adrenaline was pumping.”

Yiran Sherry said the decision over whether to try to wait to give birth until they reached the hospital was an agonising one. However, she said, she kept glancing at their estimated arrival time and saw it was barely moving.

“Should I push or should I hold? Should I push or should I hold? Fuck it, let’s do this,” she recalled telling herself, according to People magazine.

She gave birth to her daughter as they arrived at the hospital, whispering: “Oh, my God, Keating. She’s out.”

Nurses cut the baby’s umbilical cord over the car’s front seat.

Keating Sherry said: “Once the pediatrician said, ‘She’s healthy, congratulations,’ that was quite the sigh of relief.”

Once she was in hospital, Yiran said, nurses kept coming into her room to see the “Tesla baby”.

“[They would ask] ‘Are you the one who delivered the baby in the car?’” Yiran Sherry said.

The couple named their daughter Maeve Lily, after briefly considering Tess, in tribute to the car manufacturer.

“Thank you genius Tesla engineers for your brilliant design of autopilot,” Keating Sherry said.

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.

Co-founded by the world’s richest man, the PayPal and SpaceX entrepreneur Elon Musk, in October the company was ordered to pay $137m damages to a Black employee who was racially abused. Tesla also faces sexual assault allegations from numerous women.

Tesla did not immediately respond to Guardian request for comment.

Maeve Lily, known at Paoli Hospital as "the Tesla baby"Kristen Kanze from Bella Baby


Keating and Yiran with Maeve (left) and Rafa


The car where it happened: Keating, Yiran, Maeve and Rafa in the Tesla where Maeve made her first appearance.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
NVIDIA Achieves Historic Milestone as First Company Valued at $4 Trillion
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Linda Yaccarino Steps Down as CEO of X After Two Years
US Imposes New Tariffs on Brazilian Exports Amid Political Tensions
Azerbaijan and Armenia are on the brink of a historic peace deal.
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Weinstein Victim’s Lawyer Says MeToo Movement Still Strong
U.S. Enacts Sweeping Tax and Spending Legislation Amid Trade Policy Shifts
Football Mourns as Diogo Jota and Brother André Silva Laid to Rest in Portugal
Labour Expected to Withdraw Support for Special Needs Funding Model
Leaked Audio Reveals Tory Aide Defending DEI Record
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
London Stock Exchange Faces Historic Low in Initial Public Offerings
A new online platform has emerged in the United Kingdom, specifically targeting Muslim men seeking virgin brides
Trump Celebrates Independence Day with B-2 Flyover and Signs Controversial Legislation
Boris Johnson Urges Conservatives to Ignore Farage
SNP Ordered to Update Single-Sex Space Guidance Within Days
Starmer Set to Reject Calls for Wealth Taxes
Stolen Century-Old Rolls-Royce Recovered After Hotel Theft
Macron Presses Starmer to Recognise Palestinian State
Labour Delayed Palestine Action Ban Over Riot Concerns
Swinney’s Tax Comments ‘Offensive to Scots’, Say Tories
High Street Retailers to Enforce Bans on Serial Shoplifters
Music Banned by Henry VIII to Be Performed After 500 Years
Steve Coogan Says Working Class Is Being ‘Ethnically Cleansed’
Home Office Admits Uncertainty Over Visa Overstayer Numbers
JD Vance Questions Mandelson Over Reform Party’s Rising Popularity
Macron to Receive Windsor Carriage Ride in Royal Gesture
Labour Accused of ‘Hammering’ Scots During First Year in Power
BBC Head of Music Stood Down Amid Bob Vylan Controversy
Corbyn Eyes Hard-Left Challenge to Starmer’s Leadership
London Tube Trains Suspended After Major Fire Erupts Nearby
Richard Kemp: I Felt Safer in Israel Under Attack Than in the UK
Cyclist Says Police Cited Human Rights Act for Riding No-Handed
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
Saudi Arabia Maintains Ties with Iran Despite Israel Conflict
Musk Battles to Protect Tesla Amid Trump Policy Threats
Air France-KLM Acquires Majority Stake in Scandinavian Airlines
UK Educators Sound Alarm on Declining Child Literacy
Shein Fined €40 Million in France Over Misleading Discounts
Brazil’s Lula Visits Kirchner During Argentina House Arrest
Trump Scores Legislative Win as House Passes Tax Reform Bill
Keir Starmer Faces Criticism After Rocky First Year in Power
DJI Launches Heavy-Duty Coaxial Quadcopter with 80 kg Lift Capacity
U.S. Senate Approves Major Legislation Dubbed the 'Big Beautiful Bill'
Largest Healthcare Fraud Takedown in U.S. History Announced by DOJ
×