self-driving car

Uber’s self-driving car saw pedestrian before fatal crash, but was programmed not to brake

May 24th, 2018

Chris Mills

The National Transportation Safety Board has released its preliminary report from the investigation into the fatal collision between an Uber self-driving vehicle and a pedestrian in Tempe, Arizona earlier this year. According to the report, Uber’s self-driving system classified the pedestrian (who was wheeling a bicycle at the time) as a bicycle, and decided 1.3 …

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Dashcam video shows Uber driver was looking down moments before self-driving car killed pedestrian

March 21st, 2018

Chris Mills

Police in Tempe, Arizona have released two video clips showing the final seconds before an Uber self-driving car hit and killed a pedestrian late Sunday night. The two videos show an interior (driver-facing) and exterior view in the moments before the fatal collision, but generate more questions than answers. The exterior view shows that the …

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Uber ‘likely’ not at fault in fatal accident involving its self-driving car

March 20th, 2018

Chris Smith

Uber’s reputation is still in a downward spiral, especially after the numerous scandals and lawsuits it had to face over the past year alone. The fact that an Uber self-driving car was the first such vehicle involved in a fatal accident won’t help either. But it looks like it’s not Uber’s fault, at least according …

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That self-driving bus ‘crash’ in Las Vegas was even less of a crash than we thought

November 10th, 2017

Mike Wehner

When news began circulating some 48 hours ago that a self-driving bus in Las Vegas got into an accident mere hours after its maiden voyage, it was clear from the start that the accident was incredibly minor. There was virtually no damage, aside from a dinged plastic panel, and the city of Las Vegas was …

Self-driving car tests: California rules updated

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Autonomous cars without human drivers are coming to California next year

October 11th, 2017

Chris Mills

The California Department of Motor Vehicles has updated its rules governing self-driving vehicle testing, removing the requirement that a human backup driver be present in the car and ready to take over. The regulations will be sent to the state government after a 15-day comment period, and should be in force by the middle of …

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Congress moves on sweeping self-driving car rules that scrap safety standards

July 18th, 2017

Chris Mills

A US House subcommittee will vote Wednesday on a proposal that would sweep away existing rules for self-driving car manufacturers, according to Reuters. The proposal would bar individual states from setting their own rules on autonomous vehicles, and remove many of the safety standards that self-driving cars currently have to meet. The rules would undoubtedly accelerate …

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MIT is developing futuristic self-driving cars that can fly you out of traffic

June 26th, 2017

Chris Smith

Drones can’t stay up in the air for too long because they’re limited by battery life. Self-driving cars, on the other hand, are limited by speed and obstacles, such as traffic. But what if you could combine the strengths of one with the other? What if the self-driving cars of the future could also fly? …

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Tim Cook finally confirms Apple is working on self-driving cars

June 13th, 2017

Chris Smith

Tim Cook has finally confirmed one of the Apple rumors we keep seeing out there: Apple is working on self-driving car technology. The CEO said as much in an interview last week on the same day WWDC 2017 kicked off, but he would not also confirm whether an Apple-brand car is in the works.

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Uber is ignoring California rules on self-driving cars, and the government is pissed

December 14th, 2016

Chris Mills

Uber, the quintessential disrupter, has standard method of crashing into a new market: set up shop with low prices and zero permits for drivers; get the locals hooked on cheap cab rides; strong-arm the local government into legalizing ridesharing, and then slowly raise prices to make profit and pay for the taxes it starts paying. …

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Google has abandoned plans to make its own self-driving car

December 13th, 2016

Chris Smith

Google, one of a handful of tech companies at the forefront of the self-driving car revolution, will not make its own autonomous vehicle, according to a new report from a reliable source.