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Waymo doesn't like California's benchmark for self-driving research
Waymo is the latest company to criticize "disengagements," a metric that indicates how often a human driver is forced to take over from a fully-autonomous driving system. At the moment, every company with a self-driving car program in California must report their disengagements to the state's Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV). That includes Alphabet subsidiary Waymo, the General Motors-owned Cruise, Aurora and Nuro. The metric wasn't meant to create a public-facing leaderboard. However, industry onlookers have inevitably used disengagements to compare the maturity of these companies and the sophistication of their self-driving software. Why? Because it's rare for startups to give out lots of meaningful data, especially in a way that can be directly compared to their competition. Disengagements aren't perfect, but as the age-old saying goes, something is better than nothing.
Judge says Instacart likely misclassified California workers
California's recently enacted AB5 was aimed at improving working conditions at gig economy companies like Instacart, and it appears to be one of the first firms in the crosshairs. A San Diego county judge has granted a preliminary injunction barring Instacart from misclassifying its grocery shoppers as contractors instead of employees, finding that the state had a "probability of success" in its case against the company's parent Maplebear. The "handwriting is on the wall," the judge said. Whether or not AB5 was the right policy, it was based on a state Supreme Court decision from two years ago and became law -- Instacart couldn't pretend that it was unaware of (or couldn't adjust to) the new rules.
DOJ reportedly ends antitrust investigation over reducing car pollution
Last year the Trump Administration sought to roll back the Obama Administration's Clean Power Plan that pushed for higher fuel efficiency standards. It has also tried to stop states from like California from setting their own standards that exceed those of the federal government. Despite that, several automakers, including Ford, BMW, Volkswagen and Honda, voluntarily reached an agreement with the state of California on a slightly lower target. That was quickly followed by word of a Department of Justice antitrust investigation into the move, however today the New York Times reports it has come to an end, finding that the companies didn't break any laws by voluntarily agreeing to try to reduce the pollution created by their vehicles.
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.
After Math: Risky businesses
Joel Goodsen would blush seeing the sorts of shenanigans some of these these corporations have been getting into. And occasionally even succeeding at. Netflix goosed its viewing criteria to give a coin to its Witcher, Microsoft had another privacy whoopsie, and Germany just straight up forgot to upgrade its OS and is now paying the price. Here are five of the week's top business headlines.
California says Riot Games' discrimination settlement isn't enough
Riot Games' tentative $10 million settlement over gender discrimination claims might be revised much higher. The LA Times has learned that California's Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) and the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (DLSE) have requested to get involved the case and argue that the settlement terms are inadequate. DFEH contended that women at the League of Legends studio could be owed "over $400 million" in back pay based on the settlement's existing calculations, and that the non-financial agreements included "no enforceable changes" in policy at a company where sexism was reportedly widespread.
Uber experiment lets California drivers set their own fares
Uber is testing another new feature in what is presumably a bid to help mitigate the restrictions of Assembly Bill 5, which requires the company to treat its drivers as employees, not independent contractors. Some drivers in California will now have the ability to set their own fares, which could be up to five times the amount normally set by Uber.
Uber makes changes in California to brace for new gig worker law
Late last month, Uber and Postmates sued California in an attempt to block AB5, the law that would reclassify many gig economy workers as employees. While that fight is not over, Uber is also preparing for the event that AB5 takes effect. The company sent an email to over 150,000 drivers and millions of passengers, letting them know of several changes the company is making in California.
Uber and Postmates sue California over gig worker law
It didn't take long for tech companies to take legal action in hopes of thwarting California's gig economy labor law. Uber and Postmates have filed a lawsuit in an attempt to block AB5, which makes it harder for companies to define workers as contractors, just as it takes effect. They (along with two workers, Lydia Olson and Miguel Perez) claim the law violates both US and state Constitutions by denying the guarantees of equal protection. The companies alleged that the bill, and its sponsor Lorena Gonzalez, unfairly singled out the gig economy while letting other industries off the hook.
California's statewide Earthquake Early Warning system sent its first alert
Two months after expanding across California, the state's Earthquake Early Warning system sent out its first real alert, notifying residents of shaking in Monterey and San Luis Obispo counties, along the San Andreas fault. While the quake eventually registered at 4.3 on the Modified Mercali scale, the USGS data shows it was initially estimated at 4.8, high enough to warrant an alert.
California allows 'light-duty' self-driving delivery vehicles
Self-driving delivery vehicles could soon become a relatively common sight on California streets. The state's Department of Motor Vehicles will allow "light-duty" autonomous delivery vehicles under 10,001lbs for testing and commercial uses. Companies will need permits that vary depending on whether or not a backup driver is involved, but this will allow everything from modified passenger cars to purpose-built vans to carry groceries, pizza orders and other forms of cargo.
Uber passengers in California can 'favorite' drivers
Uber is getting some new features in California. While the favorite driver option has been live in the UK for some time, passengers in CA will, from early 2020, have the option to bookmark drivers they'd like to ride with again. Drivers will also now be given more trip information upfront -- such as a passenger's ultimate destination -- allowing them to make more informed decisions about the rides they accept. Finally, drivers will be able to accept only the trips they want to take without it affecting their Uber Pro status.
California is suing Juul for allegedly targeting minors
California is suing e-cigarette maker Juul. The lawsuit alleges that Juul targeted underage Californians with its marketing and sales practices, failed to warn consumers of their exposure to chemicals linked to cancer and birth defects, failed to properly verify the age of its customers and violated the privacy rights of minors by retaining their email addresses even when they failed age verification. Attorney General Xavier Becerra, Los Angeles District Attorney Jackie Lacey and the County of Los Angeles announced the lawsuit today.
States sue to prevent EPA from revoking state emissions powers
States are taking further legal action to prevent the Trump administration from undoing California's stricter emissions rules. California, 22 other states, DC and the cities of New York and Los Angeles have sued the EPA and other agencies in an attempt to block the regulator's plan for revoking parts of California's Clean Air Act waiver that let it implement stricter greenhouse gas and zero-emission vehicle standards. The action is a complement to an earlier lawsuit targeting the NHTSA that was aimed at stopping a parallel determination, and comes with a similar argument defending states' powers.
Amazon says it'll roll out a new grocery store format next year
Amazon is wading further into the physical retail world as it confirmed plans to open a different type of grocery store in 2020. Reports earlier this year suggested Amazon was working on a low-cost grocery format as an alternative to Whole Foods and Amazon Go.
Facebook subpoena refusal forces California to make its privacy probe public
For the first time, California's State Attorney General has admitted that his office has been investigating Facebook's privacy dealings over the past 18 months -- and we wouldn't even have known if the social network had just complied with his requests. Attorney General Xavier Becerra has revealed in new court documents that Facebook failed to comply with subpoenas asking for more information related to the Cambridge Analytica fiasco.
Apple pledges $2.5 billion to address California's housing crisis
Apple is joining Facebook, Google and Microsoft in acknowledging that tech companies are contributing to housing problems. It's pledging a total of $2.5 billion toward more available (and importantly, more accessible) housing in California. Most of this will go directly toward lowering costs. It's launching a $1 billion affordable housing investment fund, and another $1 billion fund for first-time homebuyer mortgage assistance. The company is also committing $300 million to make some of its San Jose land available for affordable housing, creating a $150 million fund for San Francisco Bay Area housing and donating $50 million to Destination: Home in order to foster "systemic change" that reduces homelessness across Silicon Valley.
California's Earthquake Early Warning system rolls out statewide
As expected, today California governor Gavin Newsom announced the launch of a statewide Earthquake Early Warning System. Based on reports from sensors embedded in the ground across the state, it can detect tremors and deliver warnings to mobile phones using the Wireless Emergency Alert system or the MyShake app (Android, iOS). This system is launching on the 30th anniversary of the Loma Prieta quake in 1989, and if this system had existed then, people attending the World Series game at Candlestick could've been notified up to 15 seconds before the quake's tremors actually reached them.
California's statewide earthquake alert system launches Thursday
In Mexico and Japan, warning systems that send out alerts for seismic events have been in place for years, but a similar setup for California has been long-delayed. Finally, on Thursday the first statewide Earthquake Early Warning System will go online. Until now, large-scale alerts have only been available in LA County, where they haven't been triggered yet. As the LA Times reports, Thursday is the 30th anniversary of the Loma Prieta earthquake, where energy from a tremor under the Santa Cruz mountains took up to 35 seconds to reach the northern edge of San Francisco. While the ShakeAlert system California will rely on can't predict earthquakes, it can feel them thanks to monitoring stations and send out messages using the MyShake app (click here to install of Android or iOS) or Wireless Emergency Alerts (like an AMBER Alert) that can give people time to prepare before the quake's energy reaches them.
After Math: Who turned the lights out?
If you live in California, the answer to that is our local power company, PG&E. But they're not the only ones unilaterally shutting down their operations, users, dissent, and what have you. Here are some highlights from a ban-tastic week.
