NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. regulators have opened an investigation into 2.6 million Teslas after reports of crashes involving the use of company technology that allows drivers to remotely command their vehicle to return to them, or move to another location, using a phone app.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration also said Tuesday that Tesla did not report any of the accidents. Tesla is under order to report crashes on “publicly accessible roads” involving vehicles being operated through its autonomous driving technology.

The new investigation follows another probe launched in October looking into the company’s “Full Self-Driving” system after getting reports of crashes in low-visibility conditions, including one that killed a pedestrian. That investigation covers 2.4 million Teslas from the 2016 through 2024 model years.

Tesla did not respond to a request for comment from The Associated Press on Tuesday.

One driver filed a complaint after a crash while using Tesla’s “Actually Smart Summon” technology and NHTSA is looking into another three similar incidents based on media reports, the NHTSA said. The agency is looking into 12 total incidents reported by users of the technology.

Each of the vehicles failed to detect posts and other parked vehicles, according to the NHTSA.

Regulators say the vehicles struck objects because the users had “too little reaction time to avoid a crash, either with the available line of sight or releasing the phone app button, which stops the vehicle’s movement.”

Shares of Tesla Inc., based in Austin, Texas, slid more than 4% in late afternoon trading Tuesday.

Musk has complained that U.S. regulations are too onerous and are holding back the development of self-driving cars. Ethics experts are worried that once President-elect Donald Trump takes office, Musk will push him to ease oversight of Tesla, which just suffered its first decline in annual sales in more than a decade.

Musk donated an estimated $250 million to Trump’s presidential campaign and is a frequent guest at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago, vetting cabinet nominees and meeting with foreign heads of state. Trump has put Musk in charge of an advisory group, the Department of Government Efficiency, that will recommend where to cut government expenses and staff at federal agencies and reduce regulation.

The NHTSA said Tuesday it will look into the top speed that Teslas can reach when users deploy its “summons” technology, as well as restrictions on public roads and line of sights requirements. It also said it expects to check for any “connectivity delays” with the app that could result in increased stopping distance.

Tesla’s Model 3 owner’s manual says that its “summons” feature is designed for use only in parking lots and driveways on private property and is disabled on public roads.

The new probe covers 2016-2025 Model S and X vehicles, 2017-2025 Model 3, 2020-2025 Model Y equipped with Tesla’s Full Self-Driving driver assistance system.

CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — Marin Plank truly had no interest in birds when she gave her husband a camera-equipped bird feeder for his birthday. But by Christmas, she had become so obsessed with birds that most of the gifts she received this year — books, stickers, notecards — were related.

“This is who I am now,” she said.

Acquaintances have stopped Plank on the street to discuss the bird photos she shares on Facebook. From copious amounts of research, she now knows the best birdseed blend and has a premium membership to a store that delivers giant bags of it to her Delaware home.

It all started when she got her first postcard from the Bird Buddy app, which provides photos and video clips that can be downloaded or shared.

“You’ve just got to click, and then the bird is in your face looking at you and mugging for you, and it’s like your own little private show,” she said. “Something about their little eyes and their goofy little faces just drew me in, and now I’m a bird enthusiast.”

While North American bird populations decline dramatically, paradoxically, the number of people watching them has increased. While the coronavirus pandemic spurred many people to head outside in search of birds, for others, smart feeders that snap photos and video of backyard visitors have brought the hobby inside.

“It really delivers value with very little input,” said Franci Zidar, founder and CEO of Bird Buddy, which has sold 350,000 smart bird feeders since 2022. “If you’re actually kind of a hardcore bird watcher, that can be a very demanding hobby. There are, however, 20 to 30 species of birds in most U.S. backyards that people either don’t really know or appreciate.”

Several other companies, including Birdfy, make similar bird feeders that are mounted with cameras. And while standard bird feeders tap into people’s altruistic sides by allowing users to take care of animals, smart feeders take it a step further, Zidar said.

“Ultimately, I think it marries two really beautiful things. One is your need to nurture and to give back and to connect with nature, and the other one is to kind of see it and appreciate it,” he said.

Bird Buddy has proven so successful that the company is expanding its portfolio to include a tiny flower-shaped camera called Petal, and Wonder Blocks, which can be assembled to provide habitats for butterflies and other insects. Details were announced Monday at CES, formerly known as the Consumer Electronics show, in Las Vegas, with a Kickstarter campaign this spring.

“Let’s not ask people to do crazy things, because they won’t. Let’s just give them value by just pointing a camera into this beautiful natural space,” Zidar said. “We’ll give you the drama, the happenings, the life that’s happening in that corner of your home.”

In Ipswich, Massachusetts, Judy Ashley already had 11 bird feeders in her yard when she got a Bird Buddy last year. She has taken down some of the older feeders in hopes of attracting more birds to the camera to capture photos of those hanging out lately in her yard, especially a yellow-throated warbler, which is rarely seen in New England. She finally succeeded on Monday.

“What’s amazing is how close you can see the details of backyard birds that you just wouldn’t see if you just stood there for hours with binoculars,” she said. “You just realize how amazing nature is.”

Rachel Matthews in Austin, Texas, has three camera-equipped feeders, including one specifically for hummingbirds. While she grew up with bird feeders, the smart feeders have increased her interest, she said.

“I love having the camera, and I see detail that even with my binoculars I’d never seen,” she said. “The female cardinals with their red eyebrows and little feathers — it’s just phenomenal.”

In November, the National Audubon Society announced a partnership with Bird Buddy to increase awareness about bird conservation. The arrangement could provide a pathway to get data from the company’s community science platform to scientists, said Nicolas Gonzalez, a spokesperson for the Audubon Society.

“We’re eager to see how smart feeders and kind of just the whole bird-feeding industry can continue fostering this appreciation for birds and nature,” he said.

In Delaware, Plank has grown attached to specific visitors to her feeder — a “badass” female Red-winged blackbird, a tufted titmouse who she said seems to know he’s handsome and blue jays who act like “drunk uncles.”

“I give them these personalities in my mind, and it’s about having them right in front of my face, doing their little silly things,” she said. “That really has drawn me in.”

So, too, have the frequent alerts and notifications she gets on her phone.

“It’s just like a little spark of joy,” she said. “There’s something about being interrupted to remind you about this little part of the world that is just really lovely.”