[Lwerewolf]

Not too different from, say, any of Toyota's hybrids (and the TLC100 / GS430 / others using "electronic brakeforce distribution")? Same with almost every EV out there, same with MB's SBC, etc. I really don't see why this counts as a big leap - all I see is the removal of the backup direct hydraulic lines, which doesn't exactly sit well with me.

[XorNot]

I mean it's not like hydraulic lines can't fail catastrophically as well though. History has given us somewhat unrealistic ideas about what is and isn't safe - it all comes down to the design, not the underlying technology.

[Lwerewolf]

The major "sudden" failure mode of pretty much all those systems has so far been the (brushed!!!) electric motor eating through its commutator (with the brushes still relatively intact) and stopping relatively suddenly - at that point, you'd better not ignore the lights on the dash, as it means there's only what's left in the hydraulic pressure accumulator in terms of assistance - afterwards there's almost nothing. The backup hydraulic lines have never really been an issue with this setup - the backup lines are two and directly go to resp. the front left and right calipers, and the only time they see pressure and fluid movement is during the brake bleeding procedure. The rest of the hydraulic circuits are somewhat safer as cars with such systems can absolutely detect and isolate a "misbehaving" circuit - i.e. if a flex hose is punctured, the rest of the system will work.