Did you knowSHIFT is taking the stage this fall?
Autonomous vehicle companyWaymo recently kicked off itsOne Trusted Tester program in San Francisco.
Can they convince those without concerns about the safety of autonomous vehicles to travel in them?
San Franciscos streets are busy with traffic.
There are pedestrians, cyclists, scooters, and emergency vehicles.
Then, theres the cable cars, trolleys, streetcars, and light rail vehicles that define the cityscape.
The program has no humans controlling the vehicles either in-car or remotely in October 2020.
People can hail the cars via smartphone, with travel geocached to a 50-square-mile service area.
The brain in the computer is Waymo Driver
Technology called Waymo Driverpowers the companys autonomous vehicles.
The hardware includes lidar, cameras, radar, and a powerful AI computing platform.
The software collects information to answer questions in split-second like:
40% off TNW Conference!
The cars possess the reasoning to handle less common scenarios like a pedestrian carrying a Christmas tree.
The numbers arent getting much better.
I cant say Im surprised.
Autonomous car companies have promised so much, for a long time.
We kinda have the technology, but what about the rest?
The Morning Brew survey respondents are already thinking about autonomous cars in action.
I wrote an article in 2017 which noted things to resolve beforeautonomous vehiclesroar out of the starting blocks.
For example:
These questions are still unanswered.
Looking forward, I think weve reached a critical impasse.
We know autonomous vehicles are technically viable or at least, were steadily heading in that direction.
We have proof of their functionality.
But many people arent sure of their safety.
They lack confidence without the necessary infrastructure and regulations.
Do EVs excite your electrons?
Do ebikes get your wheels spinning?
Do self-driving cars get you all charged up?
Story byCate Lawrence
Cate Lawrence is an Australian tech journo living in Berlin.
