State Of Autonomy: December Recap
Every month, I recap the news articles I’ve consumed around autonomous vehicles, calling out the highlights and keeping track of market projections. This is also your chance, dear readers, to nominate a topic for discussion in the following month. If you’re interested in a broader and darker conversation around human obsolescence, try subscribing to my newsletter, The Whimper.
This post right here is #100, and I’m as surprised as any of you. Thanks so much for sticking around as this blog kicks off its fourth year.
The self-driving squeeze is upon us. While “legal hurdles” is a popular reprise among skeptics of autonomous vehicles, reality paints the opposite portrait: cities and states around the world are starting to see the low-hanging fruit in developing policy that tears down conventional car-based transportation.
By assuming the future apparent, legislators get to play with house money: the inefficiencies of private vehicle ownership (congestion, parking, fossil fuels, insurance, accidents, funding shortfalls, etc.) are so plentiful, they can be used to justify nearly any pro-urban policy. In 2018, we’ll start seeing local governments adopt that rationale before the tech even reaches them.
This Month’s Highlights:
- Ford Kicks Michigan EV Assembly To Mexico To Make Room For Autonomous Vehicle Development Facility
- Insurance Startup Trōv To Provide Passenger Insurance For Waymo’s Robotaxi Program
- Honda Announces Partnership With Well-Funded Chinese AI Startup SenseTime
- Ex-Google/Baidu AI Chief Andrew Ng Launches Landing.ai With Focus On Manufacturing
- Willow Run In Michigan Opens 500-Acre AV Testing Facility
- BMW To Build 1,200-Acre AV Testing Facility In Germany
- Samsung Collaborating With Self-Driving OS Startup Renovo
- Peterbilt Teams Up With Startup Embark To Research Self-Driving Trucks
Market Predictions:
New chart! One decision I made here was to curate an array of notable players, rather than try to be fully inclusive of every Tom, Dick and Harry who makes a prediction. Hopefully you’re less confused than before. If you’re more confused, see the gif below and hope for the best.
Coming In January:
- Explaining SAE Autonomy Levels (Video)
- Your suggestion? Send a tweet to Mitch Turck
Reactions From The Public:
Re: Rinspeed Self-Driving Pod Design With “Cozy Cuddling Pod” Option
