 Autonomous driving 2
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This provides a remarkable glimpse into history, considering that five years is already a long time in the context of autonomous driving. Frank from "Schräg" was a guarantee of fair and
unbiased reporting, neither a Tesla fanboy nor a hater.
What he found in comparison to previous tests with Teslas is actually a decline in performance, which might explain why Tesla parted ways with Mobileye. Furthermore, Tesla now maintains
that only cameras are sufficient as sensors for autonomous driving.
Much has changed since then. Tesla has since participated in comparative tests, including one with Waymo and Argo AI in California, and then conducted its own tests in Austin, Texas, where
Waymo already operated a larger fleet of self-driving taxis over a larger area than Tesla.
Those specifically invited to this event, of course, hailed the latter experiment as a success, while critics complained that, unlike Waymo's robotaxis, a company employee was still present in
the passenger seat.
After that, there were further test drives without a passenger, but a YouTube video shows the presence of various devices in the factory that allow a vehicle to be operated from the outside.
The small number of Tesla vehicles involved likely means they couldn't truly do without a passenger during these tests.
Waymo already has a particularly large number of vehicles with already millions of rides booked on demand. After Ford, VW also invested in Argo AI, but later withdrew its investment. They
now collaborate with Mobileye.
Under the company name MOIA, they are working in the metropolitan area of Hamburg, but not without competition all around. The vehicles are still staffed with a driver, but according to CEO
Oliver Blume, this will no longer be necessary in two years.
While Waymo is backed by Alphabet, Amazon has now invested in Zoox Mobility. This is the only company that uses vehicles without the possibility of direct intervention. However, their
development seems to be deliberately proceeding more slowly. Their first license was obtained in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Tesla has now also responded, but not with any kind of license that would allow them to offer freely bookable rides in a town center in the USA. It was an event held on a very limited, enclosed
area, using vehicles more suited to a two-door Model 2-type car.
Ford has fully taken over the operations of Argo AI following the company's liquidation. General Motors established Cruise as an independent subsidiary and has since fully integrated it.
Cruise, like Waymo, holds permits in various cities to operate ride-sharing services.
Of course, on a global scale, we must not forget, for example, Baidu Apollo in China, which focuses primarily on robotaxis, and Didi Chuxing on delivery and ride services, as well as companies
working in this field such as Pony.ai and Huawei/ING.
In Japan, it seems that everything is under the control of the vehicle manufacturers, with close collaboration between companies like Nissan and Honda, likely led by Toyota and its affiliated
companies (SLAM), which is also evident in other areas of automotive technology.
| We apologize that important manufacturers, such as those from South
Korea, could not be included in this list. |
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