It's been a rocky road for the
self driving car market as the uber
pedestrian
death debacle has every company
screeching to a halt.
Can I get another car pun in there?
Just one more.
Yes.
I got it. Don't-
Autonomous cars are cool except
when they decide a person isn't
enough
of an obstacle to swerve around.
Well that's oversimplifying
it but you get the gist.
After investigation Uber found that
the
modified Volvo test car
that killed 49 year old Elaine
Herzberg
in March actually did see
her and recognize her.
However the problem occurred when a
bug
in the software actually made it so
the car didn't have to take evasive
action which on a technical
level unfortunately makes sense.
Computers and everything we put
them in including cars
have to determine if every obstacle
calls for evasive actions.
Not all do.
In this case though since
the threshold for an obstacle was
set so
low the car continued its
course through the obstacle
even though that obstacle was a
human.
Even more tragic the human
in the autonomous car who was
designed to be a safety if
the car malfunctioned was looking
away
from the road at the moment of
impact.
Talk about bad luck.
And while this has led to Uber
suspending
all of their self driving car tests
pending
investigation that hasn't stopped
other startups from taking on the
Goliath
of a challenge themselves.
Drive.ai has begun testing its
little blue
and orange taxis just outside Dallas
where they hope they will launch a
full fleet
in July to drive a set route
with backup drivers capped at 45
miles an hour for ten thousand
locals
in the area.
Considering this is the first
instance of
a self driving car since Elaine
Herzberg died it's a considerable
step forward in a field plagued
with skepticism
and government red tape.
In fact the venture capital market
seems
to continue to have faith in the
future
of the technology as Drive.ai
has already amassed over 77
million in funding.
But its 100 employees are taking it
one baby step at a time.
Drive.ai is starting the small city
of Frisco for very clear reasons.
The streets are wide streets.
The streets are clean.
There are very few pedestrians
and the sun is out over two thirds
of the year.
Plus it doesnt really hurt that a
new Texas law
says self driving car companies can
run
without local law restrictions.
Regardless of what the space looks
like now Drive.ai
has some major ambitions
including removing their backup
drivers
from the car by the end of the year.
They even distinguish themselves
from the competition
because of the way their cars
communicate with people by
displaying
messages like waiting for you to
cross
or picking up.
And in case of communication
failures
or if the cars are uncertain
of how to respond to a new
situation,
they could even phone
a friend.
Literally.
Technical support is an Internet
call away
and technicians can send help to the
cars that call from their three
separate cell networks in cities
that grow as quickly as a million
people a decade
investing in new technology to
improve
city efficiency seems to be
a smart move for the future.
