The news media has expended considerable effort researching and publishing information about the robotaxi business. This channel highlights some of the important articles.
AutoGuide reports that GM has been awarded a patent for having an autonomous vehicle respond to "adversarial behavior". It appears they really didn't like their Cruise vehicles getting traffic cones placed on them.
1) Tesla is acknowledging they cannot create level-5 autonomy and that instead teleoperation needs to be used; 2) they currently do not have teleoperation infrastructure; and 3) they don't seem to understand that one cannot remotely drive a vehicle, but instead can only give instructions, as Waymo does.
The Verge reports on a level 4 robotaxi that costs just $30k by having swappable batteries. Tesla and Waymo won't be able to compete with that low of a vehicle cost.
It is remarkable that Tesla will take out a patent on an idea that they have no hope or intention of building, and fan-boys will write about it as if it is some great new product.
Paris Marx reports in dazeen how we are currently going through yet another hype cycle with self-driving cars. This will definitely not help solve our transportation issues.
Wired does something rather numerous. They follow around a Waymo for a day to see what it actually does. But interestingly, they actually make some great insights.
Jalopnik reports in how a Wall Street analyst wrongly thinks that robotaxis will be less expensive than regular cars due to steering wheel and pedals not needed
Yes, it is true that Musk will try to modify federal rules for robotaxis in order to allow vehicles without controls for human drivers. But it should be very clear to everyone that Tesla does not have the necessary technology, nor is the robotaxi business a viable one, especially in the next four years. Therefore even if Musk is successful in changing the regulations it won't actually make a difference.
TechCrunch reports that Cruise is being fined $500,000 because they withheld information from regulators. They are also being investigated by the NHTSA for issues with pedestrians, and with the SEC for financial issues.
Not Just Bikes posts an epic video on not just the problems of self driving cars, but how they would turn our cities into driving hell - unless we do something about it.
Reuters reports that the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) is finally requiring the robotaxi companies to report critical information on incidents. Instead of reporting being optional once past the test phase of an implementation, it will be mandatory to report collisions and when vehicles simply get stuck in traffic or receive tickets.
