Electric Driverless Taxis??
Discussion
Don't know if there's already a thread on this... but I'm in San Francisco and am absolutely amazed at these things and the fact there everywhere. I still thought this technology was still in development and not the reality that I can order one on my app to pick us up from our Hotel and take us to a Restaurant...
There was a thread a while back where a poster scoffed at the idea of Musks robo-taxi; "It'll never work!", amazing how many people have no idea the same sort of service already exists and is a provably safer alternative to a human driven taxi.
I love this stuff, AI and faster processing is enabling all sorts of 'sci-fi' type tech. I still get a buzz when my BMW parks itself - and I mean parks itself, rapidly and accurately. It even puts the indicator on at the start of the process, checks for surrounding traffic and then parks beautifully with zero input from me, pops the handbrake on and unlocks the doors. Brilliant!
I love this stuff, AI and faster processing is enabling all sorts of 'sci-fi' type tech. I still get a buzz when my BMW parks itself - and I mean parks itself, rapidly and accurately. It even puts the indicator on at the start of the process, checks for surrounding traffic and then parks beautifully with zero input from me, pops the handbrake on and unlocks the doors. Brilliant!
CRA1G said:
Don't know if there's already a thread on this... but I'm in San Francisco and am absolutely amazed at these things and the fact there everywhere. I still thought this technology was still in development and not the reality that I can order one on my app to pick us up from our Hotel and take us to a Restaurant...
Cutting edge technology seamlessly integrated into the vehicle design 
I’ve seen smaller cameras outside Co-ops.
andy43 said:
CRA1G said:
Don't know if there's already a thread on this... but I'm in San Francisco and am absolutely amazed at these things and the fact there everywhere. I still thought this technology was still in development and not the reality that I can order one on my app to pick us up from our Hotel and take us to a Restaurant...
Cutting edge technology seamlessly integrated into the vehicle design I’ve seen smaller cameras outside Co-ops.
Wait for the second phase.
I was out in San Fran 2 weeks ago at the end of a road trip around Cali. We used Waymo everywhere! Once I realised what it was, couldn't get me out of the things, absolutely insane. So far ahead of us luddites in the UK.
It will never happen..... er, it will and it has!
It will never happen..... er, it will and it has!
Edited by grumpy_dave on Sunday 27th October 16:41
CRA1G said:
Don't know if there's already a thread on this... but I'm in San Francisco and am absolutely amazed at these things and the fact there everywhere. I still thought this technology was still in development and not the reality that I can order one on my app to pick us up from our Hotel and take us to a Restaurant...
Residents love 'em: Sheepshanks said:
CRA1G said:
Don't know if there's already a thread on this... but I'm in San Francisco and am absolutely amazed at these things and the fact there everywhere. I still thought this technology was still in development and not the reality that I can order one on my app to pick us up from our Hotel and take us to a Restaurant...
Residents love 'em: Sheepshanks said:
TheDeuce said:
What a weird thing for the news to cover. It's not news is it? Literally everyone who could possibly be affected by it, already knew it was happening, because they can hear it!
Odd thought? You could apply that thinking to most news items.I prefer the FT tbh, generally they only cover things that might actually affect those that don't already know about them, no over dramatic or biased crap.
I can't be bothered to google how many violent or sexual assaults took place in US taxis last year, but I'm willing to bet that they were generally not reported in the TV news. AI cars honking their horns though... hold the front page!
essayer said:
Is it expensive compared to Uber etc?
I think it was a bit more, maybe, but negligible for the short 2-3 mile hops around the city centre. I suspect you are paying for novelty factor. It also does automatic lift sharing if you tick the box and splits fares with people on a similar route.The big plus for me though was having nobody else in it except for my wife!
Edited by grumpy_dave on Sunday 27th October 20:42
Bemmer said:
grumpy_dave said:
The big plus for me though was having nobody else in it except for my wife!
Which makes me think who is monitoring and listening to our conversations....! Edited by grumpy_dave on Sunday 27th October 20:42
Joking aside, in any taxi you're likely to be recorded these days. No point even worrying about when you're being recorded anymore, just assume it's 'always' and don't do or say anything you might regret. The same as before living in an observed world - unless you previously enjoyed saying or doing things that might be viewed poorly...?
Funny to think that most of us grew up generally safe in the knowledge that we were not 'observed', but we were the last generation to know that feeling. The current generation live their developing lives in full view and act as if they're always observed, because they mostly are. They never knew anything different. The art of picking one's nose is in danger of disappearing forever
I have used Waymo many times so can answer some questions and assumptions.
In Phoenix, Waymo is almost always cheaper than Uber. On some occasions, I had to get an Uber due to availability.
When in the car you are filmed but audio is not monitored unless you have an issue.
The area is geo fenced but is large. I can get a Waymo from the airport to my hotel which is about 30 minutes drive.
The cars are Jaguars. The “drivers” are not afraid to make turns I would if I was on my own but not if the wife was in the car.
Cars are all spotless. People are concerned about how clean they are. They are not e-scooters. You can’t discard them in a river.
Here is a video from the inside.
In Phoenix, Waymo is almost always cheaper than Uber. On some occasions, I had to get an Uber due to availability.
When in the car you are filmed but audio is not monitored unless you have an issue.
The area is geo fenced but is large. I can get a Waymo from the airport to my hotel which is about 30 minutes drive.
The cars are Jaguars. The “drivers” are not afraid to make turns I would if I was on my own but not if the wife was in the car.
Cars are all spotless. People are concerned about how clean they are. They are not e-scooters. You can’t discard them in a river.
Here is a video from the inside.
h0b0 said:
I have used Waymo many times so can answer some questions and assumptions.
In Phoenix, Waymo is almost always cheaper than Uber. On some occasions, I had to get an Uber due to availability.
When in the car you are filmed but audio is not monitored unless you have an issue.
The area is geo fenced but is large. I can get a Waymo from the airport to my hotel which is about 30 minutes drive.
The cars are Jaguars. The “drivers” are not afraid to make turns I would if I was on my own but not if the wife was in the car.
Cars are all spotless. People are concerned about how clean they are. They are not e-scooters. You can’t discard them in a river.
Here is a video from the inside.
It's really quite amazing that they've achieved such a positive driving style, I remeber the early days of autonomous cars where they were near faultless but so ponderous... These things are so sharp and fluid!In Phoenix, Waymo is almost always cheaper than Uber. On some occasions, I had to get an Uber due to availability.
When in the car you are filmed but audio is not monitored unless you have an issue.
The area is geo fenced but is large. I can get a Waymo from the airport to my hotel which is about 30 minutes drive.
The cars are Jaguars. The “drivers” are not afraid to make turns I would if I was on my own but not if the wife was in the car.
Cars are all spotless. People are concerned about how clean they are. They are not e-scooters. You can’t discard them in a river.
Here is a video from the inside.
I suppose there is a ticking time bomb, it's only a matter of time until one is involved in an incident where it could be argued that a human driver could have done 'something' to limit the damage... But that argument, despite the press coverage, will be hollow. These autonomous cars have already slashed the incident rate per mile travelled, across hundreds of thousands of miles. It can't be argued with. Computers are, unsurprisingly, better at routine driving than the average human being. No human driver can be trusted to 'always focus on driving' to the same extent a computer can.
TheDeuce said:
I suppose there is a ticking time bomb, it's only a matter of time until one is involved in an incident where it could be argued that a human driver could have done 'something' to limit the damage...
See, if you took more notice of the news you'd know loads of 'em have crashed. 
I guess it what it needs is for all cars to be Waymo's.
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