If you want to test out what riding in a driverless car is like, you can head to Phoenix and hop on Waymo One’s robotaxi service, which just launched to the public this month.
But don’t expect to see Elon Musk hitching a ride.
Waymo, owned by Google, has started to allow passengers on their driver-less Chrysler Pacific minivans, according to The Hustle. Riders are remotely monitored and the autonomous vehicles must stay within a 50-square-mile radius. (Rides with human operators can go up to 100 miles.)
The no-driver cabs can be hailed via an app — and they are under similar Covid-related safety and cleaning measures as normal cabs (hand sanitizer, increased internal air flow, passengers must wear masks, etc.). According to TechCrunch, the all-electric Jaguar I-Pace may soon be added to the driverless program.
But not a huge fan? Tesla’s Elon Musk, who left some comments on Ark Invest’s Tasha Keeney’s tweets, which were touting the potential cost savings of AVs.
“Waymo is impressive, but a highly specialized solution,” he notes. “The Tesla approach is a general solution. The latest build is capable of zero intervention drives. Will release limited beta in a few weeks.”
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