That article doesn't say self-driving cars can't handle merging on the BQE. Heck, it doesn't MENTION merging nor the BQE. It's just a generally skeptical take from last year largely on the BUSINESS end of self-driving.
Takes of that sort should always be expected as it's *hard* to launch a new industry. Early in the development of any new…
That article doesn't say self-driving cars can't handle merging on the BQE. Heck, it doesn't MENTION merging nor the BQE. It's just a generally skeptical take from last year largely on the BUSINESS end of self-driving.
Takes of that sort should always be expected as it's *hard* to launch a new industry. Early in the development of any new technology, many companies will think they MIGHT have a competitive edge and be motivated to invest in doing it themselves but over time most will discover that they didn't have the edge they thought or will hit snags in development and drop out, expecting that they can ultimately BUY or license the tech from the eventual winners. Meanwhile those who stay in the fight will almost always find themselves pivoting and trying various strategies to get off the ground because nobody yet knows exactly where the most or easiest profit is to be found.
(The silliest quote in the article is (as an example of "Industry leaders backing off on big claims"): "Waymo has said it will be decades before the technology is everywhere in the world." That is not "backing off"! Did anyone actually claim it would be EVERYWHERE IN THE WORLD in less than "decades"? If so, that was a silly person who we shouldn't be letting set the bar for what constitutes success. Lots of people think it will be popular - maybe even common/ubiquitous in *some areas* - but it's a long way from that to EVERYWHERE IN THE WORLD.)
This month, Cruise greatly expanded their service volume in SF, increased by 20x the size of the region they serve in Phoenix,AZ, and started test service in Atlanta and Nashville. Expect to see more articles like this:
That article doesn't say self-driving cars can't handle merging on the BQE. Heck, it doesn't MENTION merging nor the BQE. It's just a generally skeptical take from last year largely on the BUSINESS end of self-driving.
Takes of that sort should always be expected as it's *hard* to launch a new industry. Early in the development of any new technology, many companies will think they MIGHT have a competitive edge and be motivated to invest in doing it themselves but over time most will discover that they didn't have the edge they thought or will hit snags in development and drop out, expecting that they can ultimately BUY or license the tech from the eventual winners. Meanwhile those who stay in the fight will almost always find themselves pivoting and trying various strategies to get off the ground because nobody yet knows exactly where the most or easiest profit is to be found.
(The silliest quote in the article is (as an example of "Industry leaders backing off on big claims"): "Waymo has said it will be decades before the technology is everywhere in the world." That is not "backing off"! Did anyone actually claim it would be EVERYWHERE IN THE WORLD in less than "decades"? If so, that was a silly person who we shouldn't be letting set the bar for what constitutes success. Lots of people think it will be popular - maybe even common/ubiquitous in *some areas* - but it's a long way from that to EVERYWHERE IN THE WORLD.)
This month, Cruise greatly expanded their service volume in SF, increased by 20x the size of the region they serve in Phoenix,AZ, and started test service in Atlanta and Nashville. Expect to see more articles like this:
https://sfstandard.com/2023/08/11/san-francisco-robotaxi-cruise-debauchery/
If you think that article is just talking about the business end rather than the technical aspects then you need to go back and reread that article.