Waymo job cuts exceed 200 this year
Google’s driverless car division has cut a further 137 jobs, bringing the total for the year to 209. Reuters reports the engineering jobs have been eliminated so Waymo can “focus on commercial success”. The job losses total around eight per cent of the company’s workforce. A Waymo spokesperson told TechCrunch that the layoffs, mostly in […]
San Francisco officials warn of safety dangers caused by driverless vehicles
It’s emerged firefighters in San Francisco were forced to break a driverless vehicle’s windows in order to get it moved from across a hose being used to fight a fire in the city last month. The event has been detailed in a joint letter from Directors at the city’s Municipal and County Transportation departments, and […]
San Francisco looks to slow introduction of driverless vehicles
It’s seen to be the capital of the world’s driverless vehicle technology, but now officials in San Francisco are asking the state of California to halt or scale back the expansion plans of Cruise and Waymo. NBC news reports repeated incidents in which cars without drivers stopped and idled in the middle of the street […]
Waymo rolls out driverless taxi service in American city of Phoenix
Google’s driverless car subsidiary Waymo has announced it will start taking fares in driverless vehicles from anyone with its app in the central area of Phoenix, Arizona. The widening of its service comes after months of testing, with millions of miles driven. Previously, the company had only been operating journeys with no safety driver behind […]
Uber Freight and Waymo Via partner “to accelerate the future of logistics”
Uber Freight and Google’s driverless division, Waymo Via, have announced a long-term strategic partnership to connect their technologies and deploy autonomous trucks at scale on the Uber Freight network. It says this partnership brings together “the power of Waymo’s autonomous driving technology with the scale of Uber Freight’s network and leading marketplace technology, unlocking a […]
Waymo and Cruise get permission to charge for driverless rides in California
Google’s sister company Waymo and General Motors subsidiary Cruise have taken the next step on their business journeys to deliver driverless taxi services by getting permission to charge for rides in parts of California. The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) has issued “Drivered Deployment permits” to allow for passenger service in autonomous vehicles, although it […]
Waymo’s freight division in Texan driverless trucking trial
Waymo Via, the delivery part of Google’s self-driving division, is expanding its existing partnership with UPS to carry freight via autonomous lorries between Houston and Dallas-Forth Worth. TechCrunch reports that Waymo is not saying how many trucks it is using on the 240 mile route, but that it did say “multiple trucks” from its test […]
Cruise seeks permission to commercialise driverless vehicles
The General Motors driverless car subsidiary Cruise is seeking final approval from California to begin commercialising its driverless taxi fleet in San Francisco. CNBC says the self-driving start-up has submitted a permit for an autonomous vehicle deployment with the California Public Utilities Commission. It is the last of six permits needed to begin charging the […]
Cruise gets permission to run driverless cars with no safety driver
General Motors’ driverless car company Cruise has received a permit from the California Department of Motor Vehicles to offer rides to passengers in their “Robotaxis” with no safety drivers. Reuters reports the Company has obtained a permit from the California Department of Motor Vehicles to offer driverless rides to passengers at night in some parts […]
Americans with experience of driverless cars warming to the idea
A new study conducted by Arizona State University suggests there’s public enthusiasm for greater use of autonomous vehicles. Participants in a six-month experiment among older and disabled residents in the Phoenix metro area said they felt AV services were safe, convenient and even preferable to traditional taxis or ride-share options. The results are part of […]
