#AutonomousVehicles
AAA: Most People Don't Trust Autonomous Vehicles
Most people in the U.S. are distrustful of autonomous vehicles. That’s the message from AAA’s latest study, which found that a surprising number of people express fear, and many are uncertain about autonomous technology.
Waymo Autonomous Vehicle Set Ablaze By Crowd In San Francisco
Autonomous vehicles don’t have the best track record when it comes to earning and keeping public trust, even in tech-forward California. General Motors’ Cruise is taking a hiatus testing its vehicles after a high-profile crash and recall, and most recently, a Waymo vehicle was set on fire in San Francisco.
Waymo Autonomous Car Hits Bicyclist in San Francisco
General Motors’ Cruise division has been in the news a lot lately, but Waymo has stayed mostly out of the spotlight. That changed earlier this week when one of its autonomous taxis struck a bicyclist in San Francisco, though it appears the situation might have even challenged human drivers.
Updated: Waymo Looks to Expand While Cruise is Down and Out
Updated with new information from Waymo after publication. We corrected dates for the company's Arizona operations, and Waymo noted that its expansion plans are not tied to Cruise's in any way.
General Motors’ Cruise has had a rough few months, ending with it pulling back on autonomous testing efforts across the country. Now, Alphabet’s Waymo is looking to expand, asking the California Public Utilities Commission for permission to grow its services in Los Angeles.
GM Sued San Francisco for Allegedly Inflated Tax Bill
General Motors’ Cruise has had an exceptionally tough 2023, but the company isn’t going down without a fight or, in this case, a massive lawsuit against the city of San Francisco. GM has paid San Francisco $108 million in taxes and $13 million in interest since 2016 and now wants it back.
Rather than taxing GM and Cruise separately, as the automaker claims it should, the city lumped them together, resulting in higher tax bills.
GM's Cruise Laying Off Hundreds to Slash Costs
The hits keep on coming for GM’s Cruise. After high-profile crashes and being forced to temporarily shutter operations in California, the autonomous vehicle unit announced yesterday that it would lay off a quarter of its workforce in a move that sees around 900 people losing their jobs.
Autonomous F-150s May Be On Battlefields of the Future
The Ford F-150 is one of the most popular vehicles of any type in the world, and it has a heavy presence in fleets of all sorts, from police to parks and recreation departments. The pickup is also used extensively in federal government fleets, including the military, where an autonomous vehicle developer has come up with a gnarly F-150 for use way off the beaten path.
Cruise CEO and Co-Founder Steps Down
Cruise is going through some things right now. After one of its robotaxis hit a pedestrian, the company halted all autonomous vehicle operations and issued a recall for many of its units. It also lost the ability to operate in California, its home base, at least temporarily, and now, we’ve learned that its CEO and co-founder has stepped down.
Shocker: Cruise Robotaxis Occasionally Need Human Help
General Motors’ Cruise autonomous vehicle division has had a bumpy few months. A number of frustrating failures have caused massive traffic pileups, car accidents, and even injured pedestrians. There have been so many issues that the company is temporarily halting public testing and has issued a recall for some of its vehicles. Now, we’re learning that Cruise’s robotaxis aren’t as robotic as everyone thought, as the company recently told CNBC that it employs “remote assistant agents” (people) to help the vehicles navigate.
Cruise Autonomous Vehicles Recalled
General Motors’ Cruise autonomous division has had a rough few weeks. First, the company temporarily shuttered operations while it determined why its vehicles kept running into things. Earlier this week, Cruise announced a pause in production of its autonomous van, and now, the NHTSA is getting involved with a recall.
GM To Temporarily Halt Production of Cruise Origin Van
General Motors recently announced a pause on all autonomous vehicle operations after several high-profile accidents, one including a pedestrian. Automotive News reported that the automaker is also halting production of the Cruise Origin Van.
Cruise Outsources Review of Regulatory Response
On Friday, Cruise confirmed that its board had hired an outside law firm and technology consultants after the California Department of Motor Vehicles suspended its driverless vehicle operations. While robotaxi services had started developing a bad reputation in the months leading up to the suspension, Cruise (owned by General Motors) only saw government action taken against it following a high-profile incident where one of its vehicles struck a pedestrian.
California DMV Suspends Cruise Driverless Vehicle Permits
The California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) has suspended Cruise’s permit to operate driverless vehicles, citing public safety concerns.
This represents a major victory for the Alphabet-owned Waymo, as it’s now the only company within the state that’s legally allowed to offer robotaxi services. On Tuesday, the DMV said that Cruise’s suspension would take effect immediately with the company likewise stating that it would be pausing operations to examine potential improvements in how its vehicles operate.
NHTSA Launches Safety Investigation Into GM's Cruise
General Motors’ Cruise may be one of the first companies in the world to field driverless vehicles as part of a commercial endeavor. But this doesn’t appear to have endeared the brand to everyday people. The business appears to be loathed by San Franciscan residents and emergency response crews, who have only gotten angrier since state regulators allowed the business to expand operations.
Sustained reports of mishaps and injuries involving the vehicles has encouraged the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to launch a preliminary investigation into the company — which may also explain why Cruise just issued a press release explaining how it’s going to remedy all of the above.
GM's Cruise Robotaxi Workaround Has First Responders Moving Wayward Autonomous Cars
Companies hoping to press autonomous vehicles into service on public roads have a long way to go to convince governments and local residents that everything will be fine, and the number of high-profile accidents in test cities isn’t helping. General Motors’ Cruise has been testing AVs in San Francisco for a while, but the company’s vehicles have been involved in a number of incidents with first responders, in which they block or delay rescue workers’ ability to help people. The company is looking at ways to improve the situation and recently penned a blog post to explain the path forward.
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