Post by Morreion on Aug 18, 2016 12:31:21 GMT -5
Uber to Put 100 Autonomous Volvo SUVs on Road in Pittsburgh (WSJ)
Customers will be able to summon the vehicles for short trips within the city
Customers will be able to summon the vehicles for short trips within the city
...Uber Chief Executive Travis Kalanick has said he expects computer-controlled vehicles to one day replace the company’s legions of human-operated cars. Such autos, in concert with others on the road, are believed by some regulators and industry executives to be safer and more reliable than traditional automobiles, which are prone to human error.
Others share in Uber’s dream, including the largest U.S. auto manufacturers and Lyft Inc., Uber’s chief rival in ride hailing. But Uber and others have said it will be many years before autonomous vehicles are ubiquitous.
Ford Motor Co. this week set a goal of producing fully self-driving vehicles with no steering wheel or pedals within the next five years. General Motors Co., which has invested $500 million in Lyft, also plans to test autonomous Chevrolet Bolt taxis with its partner next year using technology it acquired earlier this year in a $1 billion deal for startup Cruise Automation Inc.
And Alphabet Inc. ’s Google has taken a lead on developing driverless vehicles, with test vehicles already cruising along Silicon Valley roads.
Ride-hailing companies say their services help reduce the need for car ownership as only dedicated drivers or driverless cars would be needed in the future. By enlisting autonomous vehicles, Uber also eliminates the need to pay its fleet of contracted drivers, many of whom have been agitating for higher wages and benefits such as more comprehensive insurance.
Volvo will conduct much of the initial engineering on a platform for an XC90 SUV that is capable of piloting itself. Uber and Volvo will use that technology as the foundation to develop their own self-driving vehicle technologies, which may one day be available for the Swedish auto maker’s customers to purchase.
Others share in Uber’s dream, including the largest U.S. auto manufacturers and Lyft Inc., Uber’s chief rival in ride hailing. But Uber and others have said it will be many years before autonomous vehicles are ubiquitous.
Ford Motor Co. this week set a goal of producing fully self-driving vehicles with no steering wheel or pedals within the next five years. General Motors Co., which has invested $500 million in Lyft, also plans to test autonomous Chevrolet Bolt taxis with its partner next year using technology it acquired earlier this year in a $1 billion deal for startup Cruise Automation Inc.
And Alphabet Inc. ’s Google has taken a lead on developing driverless vehicles, with test vehicles already cruising along Silicon Valley roads.
Ride-hailing companies say their services help reduce the need for car ownership as only dedicated drivers or driverless cars would be needed in the future. By enlisting autonomous vehicles, Uber also eliminates the need to pay its fleet of contracted drivers, many of whom have been agitating for higher wages and benefits such as more comprehensive insurance.
Volvo will conduct much of the initial engineering on a platform for an XC90 SUV that is capable of piloting itself. Uber and Volvo will use that technology as the foundation to develop their own self-driving vehicle technologies, which may one day be available for the Swedish auto maker’s customers to purchase.
