In both situations the lawnmower scoots up and takes fuel without paying, so it's meeting the basic requirements for theft. But the question was whether the la

In both situations the lawnmower scoots up and takes fuel without paying, so it's meeting the basic requirements for theft. But the question was whether the lawnmower was trying to commit theft, as much as a computer can try to do things. In scenario A there's strong evidence it got confused and did its best to make a normal purchase. Lawnmower A didn't regard its actions as theft, while lawnmower B did.