Self-driving cars are finally here, and how they are deployed will change how we get around forever. From Tesla to Google to Uber to all the major automakers, we bring you complete coverage of the race to develop fully autonomous vehicles. This includes helpful explanations about the technology and policies that underpin the movement to build driverless cars.
This perfect billboard was spotted in LA by The Curbivore (which crossed my radar via Glenn Mercer’s Car Charts). My hat’s off to the Law Brothers’ pun game. And the fact that this photo was taken from a Waymo vehicle is just the cherry on top.
Waymo has been testing the new vehicle for months now, but always with camouflage. Now it seems like the wrapping is coming off, thanks to this video captured by YouTube channel “I Love Vehicles.” As some Reddit users noted, the rear lidar in particular could prove tempting to folks looking to do some chin-ups.
Me? I’m just amazed that Waymo is able to clear all the tariffs and restrictions on Chinese-made electric vehicles. Waymo says it doesn’t expect to receive the bulk of deliveries from Zeekr until late 2025. Who knows what tariffs will be in place by then!
The federal team in charge of overseeing the safety of autonomous vehicles was already pretty small: only about seven people total, according to the Washington Post. But now the Elon Musk-led cuts have eliminated three of the seven. That’s probably good for Tesla, which aims to launch a robotaxi service this summer.
“If the question is, will this affect the federal government’s ability to understand the safety case behind Tesla’s vehicles, then yes, it will,” said one terminated engineer. “The amount of people in the federal government who are able to understand this adequately is very small. Now it’s almost nonexistent.”
[washingtonpost.com]
The Rideshare Guy’s Harry Campbell got ahold of a survey asking about a potential Waymo membership program, with potential perks such as cash back and discounts for future robotaxi rides. The monthly plans could cost between $9.99-$29.99. As Campbell notes, with a small but ardent customer base, it makes sense that Waymo is trying to lock in loyalty of its fans, especially as it looks to grow to new markets. Still, it begs the question whether the company is jumping the gun by introducing a membership program while operating in only three cities. And unlike Uber, Waymo doesn’t have a food delivery business with which to whet appetites.
[thedriverlessdigest.com]
The toaster-shaped vehicle made safe if conservative decisions and offered a relatively comfortable ride through Las Vegas.
Customers who book a robotaxi to select LA transit stations can get a $3 credit that can be applied to future Waymo rides. The promotion will run February 4-April 1, and is specifically geared toward helping LA residents get to LAX via bus. (Waymo still isn’t making airport runs in LA, nor does it operate on the freeways — yet.) Waymo says the promotion will help it learn how customers use (or don’t use) its self-driving cars as first- and last-mile options for public transportation. But some experts worry that autonomous vehicles will siphon riders from transit, which could lead to service cuts.
The Swedish automaker is already working with Aurora on its autonomous big rigs, and now its adding Waabi to its list of partners. Raquel Urtasun, the former chief scientist at Uber’s Advanced Technologies Group, founded Waabi in 2021 to be a more “AI-centric approach” to autonomous vehicles.
Volvo says it will integrate the “Waabi Driver” into its autonomous trucks at its assembly plant in Virginia. No word on when the driverless trucks will hit the road. (Trucking has been a tougher problem for AV operators than robotaxis. Actually, the robotaxis are pretty tough too.)
Waymo just flipped the switch from supervised to unsupervised in Atlanta, where it aims to eventually launch a commercial robotaxi service later this year through an exclusive partnership with Uber. But for now, the Alphabet-owned company’s vehicles will only be available to employees. Waymo is currently operating in San Francisco, Phoenix, and LA, and is still operating under a waitlist in Austin. Also on deck: Miami.
It’s a big move for the robotaxi company, especially if they want to cut down on trip times amid competition with Uber and other human-powered services. The company said that a 17 mile trip from Santa Monica Pier to the Broad museum utilizing Interstate 10 would be 50 percent faster than local roads. Waymo has been slowly expanding its geofence to include more freeways, most notably in Phoenix.
This time it occurred during an “illegal” street takeover near the Beverly Center in LA. Video from Fox 11 shows a crowd of people basically dismantling the driverless car piece by piece, and then using the broken pieces to smash the windows. This is going to happen more frequently as these cars spread to more cities, but obviously you are taking a huge risk when vandalizing a car that it literally covered in cameras.
This week, the Biden administration finalized a rule that effectively bans connected vehicles from China. So naturally some of us were wondering how that would affect Waymo’s next-gen robotaxis, which are built by Zeekr in China. Now that it’s had a few days to review the rule, Waymo assures us that everything’s cool.
“Waymo filed comments in support of the rule last fall, and we appreciate the Department’s prompt rulemaking,” spokesperson Ethan Teicher told me. “We do not anticipate the final rule will impact our use of the Zeekr platform.”
Sophia Tung, who ran a 24/7 livestream of a Waymo parking lot that went viral last year, just uploaded this fascinating video about her attempt to hail a driverless car in China. Along the way, she runs into a number of problems, including pedestrian-unfriendly infrastructure and a lack of available cars. This leaves me wondering whether the US should be as scared of China’s AV industry as they have been.
I’m not saying I want to buy one. I’m just very curious to see where this is going.
The vehicles will be underpinned by a new in-house-developed operating system named after Honda’s iconic Asimo robot.
iDrive uses 3D graphics and augmented reality to keep your eyes on the road.