The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced on Dec 22. that it has opened a formal investigation into Tesla over the safety of its front center touchscreen that could allow drivers to play video games while the vehicle is in motion. The U.S. auto safety regulator said that it is looking into 580,000 Tesla vehicles sold since 2017 that have the feature. Tesla’s CEO Elon Musk has promoted in-vehicle entertainment as he believes it will be highly desirable once vehicles become autonomous. The touchscreen feature, which is called “Passenger Play,” may act as a distraction for the driver and thus increase the risk of a crash, according to the agency. The New York Times reported earlier this month that a Tesla service update inserted a warning reading: “Playing while the car is in motion is only for passengers,” and that a button will ask for confirmation that the player is …