autonomous vehicles
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Hitting the Books: How autonomous EVs could help solve climate change
Climate change is far and away the greatest threat of the modern human era — a crisis that will only get worse the longer we dither — with American car culture as a major contributor to the nation’s greenhouse emissions. In his latest book, Our Livable World, science and technology analyst Marc Shaus, takes readers on a fascinating tour of the emerging tools — from “smart highways” to jet fuel made from trash — that will not only help curb climate change but perhaps even usher in a new, more sustainable, livable world. In terms of our worst areas for carbon emissions, transportation and electricity production easily top the list.
Motional's fully driverless cars are coming to Nevada's roads for testing
The state has agreed to let the company trial AVs with no safety drivers.
MIT tests autonomous 'Roboat' that can carry two passengers
MIT looked at the original Roboat as “quarter-scale” option, with the Roboat II being half-scale; they’re slowly working up to the point of a full-scale option that can carry four to six passengers.
GM will test fully driverless cars in SF later this year
San Francisco residents will start seeing unmanned Cruise driverless vehicles on the streets of their city by the end of the year.
Einride makes its autonomous delivery EVs more aerodynamic
Two of the variants are available for pre-order and should start shipping in 2021.
Tesla update lets vehicles drive through green lights automatically
Tesla's Auotpilot will drive through green lights even if there isn't a lead car.
Uber backup driver charged with negligent homicide in self-driving accident
Uber's self-driving test car struck and killed a person two years ago, and today a grand jury indicted the backup driver on a charge of negligent homicide.
Cavnue is designing a road for autonomous cars in Michigan
The state of Michigan is partnering with an Alphabet subsidiary called Cavnue to potentially build a 40-mile autonomous corridor between Detroit and Ann Arbor.
Sony plans to test its prototype Vision-S electric car on public roads
Its big CES surprise may evolve beyond the prototype stage after all.
Amazon acquires self-driving startup Zoox
Amazon will reportedly pay over $1.2 billion to acquire Zoox, one of the many companies working on self-driving technology. The acquisition represents Amazon’s strongest commitment to self-driving so far.
NVIDIA and Mercedes partner to create a next-gen car computer
During a joint press conference held Wednesday, NVIDIA and Mercedes Benz announced that they are teaming up to develop a “revolutionary in-vehicle computing system” for the automakers next generation of luxury automobiles in 2024.
Yandex updates its self-driving tech on the 2020 Hyundai Sonata
Yandex revealed its fourth-generation self-driving car, a collaboration with Hyundai.
Nuro will test autonomous prescription delivery for CVS
Nuro will use its autonomous vehicles to deliver CVS Pharmacy prescriptions to customers in Houston.
Intel buys transit app maker Moovit to advance its mobility ambitions
Intel acquired transit app company Moovit for nearly $900 million.
Uber resumes self-driving car tests on San Francisco streets
Two years after Uber suspended all self-driving car tests following the death of a pedestrian, it is creeping back onto San Francisco's streets. Today, Uber Advanced Technologies Group (ATG) resumed testing its autonomous vehicles in the city, TechCrunch reports.
Waymo’s fifth-generation Driver can peek around blind spots
Today, Waymo unveiled its fifth-generation Waymo Driver, the combination of hardware and software that guides its autonomous vehicles. According to the company, the new tech can spot a car door opening a city block away, give trucks the ability to see debris hundreds of meters ahead on the highway, help vehicles "peek" around blind spots and more.
Uber can resume testing its self-driving cars in California
Uber started scaling back its self-driving car tests after one of its vehicles hit and killed a pedestrian in March of 2018. While the company doesn't seem primed to unleash a fleet of autonomous cars, it has been granted a new permit to resume testing in California. San Francisco -- home to Uber's headquarters -- is likely to be the company's main target, given its complex and twisting street layout. "While we do not have an update as to exactly when we'll resume autonomous testing, receiving our testing permit through the California DMV is a critical step towards that end," an Uber spokesperson told TechCrunch.
Cruise's self-driving electric shuttle is made for ridesharing
Cruise still isn't ready to say when its autonomous vehicle will be available, but now it's shown off the Origin, a GM-built electric shuttle van that doesn't have a steering wheel or pedals. Instead it's fully self-driving, intended to be a shareable, modular vehicle that can handle being on the road all the time. It's basically a minibus, with three seats at each end that face each other and split sliding doors that open up like a subway car. Cruise hasn't revealed details like the battery capacity or cost, but claims that "the average San Franciscan household driving themselves or using ridesharing" will see savings of $5,000 per year thanks to the vehicle. According to execs, more information on manufacturing for this "production" vehicle will be coming soon. Also, because of its modular design, they think it will be better suited for use as a robotaxi than regular passenger cars, and that its sensors will have "superhuman" ability to spot pedestrians and navigate in bad weather. They claim it's "what you'd build if there were no cars." Lofty promises -- hopefully we'll find out soon how the company plans to fulfill them. Others, including Ford, Waymo, Uber and Tesla, just to name a few, are also chasing the autonomous-cars-as-a-service model in different ways, and it's still unclear who may get their first.
Lyft’s autonomous vehicle partner Magna is done with self-driving tech
Two years after teaming up with Lyft to collaborate on self-driving technology, Magna said that partnership's coming to an end. The auto parts maker plans to focus on assisted driving products, instead of fully autonomous tech.
A $100 box is the cheapest way we've seen to add LiDAR to cars
Velodyne, one of the companies that helped invent modern LiDAR, says it has developed a component that will make adding laser-based radar to autonomous cars and other vehicles more affordable. At CES, the company showed off its new Velabit LiDAR system, which it plans to sell to manufacturers for about $100 per unit.