Author: Zech

The Nuro R2 autonomous delivery vehicle has a section ready for unloading in this undated photo taken in Houston, Texas, US. Nuro Inc/Handout via Reuters DETROIT (AP) — For the first time, the U.S. government’s national highway safety agency has approved a company’s request to deploy self-driving vehicles that don’t meet federal safety standards that apply to cars and trucks driven by humans. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has given Silicon Valley robotics company Nuro a provisional green light to operate self-driving delivery vehicles at low speeds that are designed not to carry humans. Nuro vehicles are not required…

The Baidu Apollo autonomous vehicle is on display at the 2nd Digital China Summit & Exhibition. [+] The Fuzhou Strait International Convention and Exhibition Center in Fuzhou, Fujian province, China last year. (Photo by Visual China Group via Getty Images/Visual China Group via Getty Images)Visual China Group via Getty Images When this technology emerged, the predictions were astounding: one prediction in 2015 predicted that by 2018, autonomous vehicles would be driving around U.S. cities with significant numbers of humans inside. But as of 2020, AVs have barely caught on in the United States, and other countries, particularly China, are trying…

The overall autonomous driving market is expected to grow by $560 billion by 2035. This transformation will bring about significant efficiency gains and reduce externalities, especially accidents, congestion, and energy use. Autonomous vehicles (AVs) offer a range of benefits to users and society. Accidents could fall by up to 70% per year, resulting in huge savings for the economy and welfare. Costs for users could fall by 35% as such vehicles would experience less wear and tear. Electric vehicles (widely expected as the standard for AVs) would be considerably more energy efficient, and connected cars could become even more efficient…

Technology has upended one business after another across the United States. To cite only the most recent developments: Lyft and others have utterly changed personal transportation, and Airbnb has done the same for hospitality. And in January 2018, the first Amazon Go store opened, sans checkout clerks, promising similar upheaval for grocers. Stay current on your favorite topics What is happening is fairly well understood, if initially underestimated. Digitization and other technological advances are exposing the vulnerabilities in every industry, particularly retail. And now, logistics companies are starting to feel the heat. Our new research has turned up five trends…

The unstoppable momentum of automation and artificial intelligence is rapidly changing the way we travel, work, and design our cities. Technological advancements are transforming the mobility landscape, and companies continue to invest billions of dollars in the development, testing, and deployment of autonomous vehicles. As a result, autonomous vehicles are being tested in cities across the country. Autonomous vehicles are being developed in a variety of ways, with different options and approaches being implemented by city and state governments. Soon, autonomous vehicles will be ubiquitous on our roads, but the full scope of what will happen is yet to be…

Aurora self-driving test car.Source: AuroraThe team consisted of Chris Urmson, the former chief technology officer of Google’s self-driving car division, and Sterling Anderson, the former head of Tesla’s Autopilot division, who together founded Aurora, one of a growing number of startups working on self-driving cars.Mouat currently serves as Aurora’s vice president and general counsel.When the prospect of working on self-driving cars arose, Will Mouatt, 41, put all his effort into it. He now serves as vice president and general counsel for Aurora.Source: Will MauattNew technology is often met with fear, and self-driving cars are no exception. According to the Pew…

June 18, 2018 Autonomous vehicles are one of the main sources of uncertainty in the future of transportation energy consumption in the United States. Autonomous vehicle technology has the potential to change travel behavior, vehicle design, energy efficiency, and vehicle ownership. According to analysis in EIA’s Annual Energy Outlook 2018 (AEO2018), the widespread adoption of autonomous vehicles could lead to an overall increase in light vehicle travel and, depending on how those vehicles are powered, a small increase in transportation energy consumption. On-road vehicles, including light-duty cars, buses, commercial trucks, and freight trucks, are significant consumers of energy in the…

ORLANDO, Fla. (May 22, 2018) – In the wake of high-profile incidents involving self-driving technology, a new AAA report tracking a multi-year study finds that consumer trust in these vehicles is plummeting. Three-quarters (73%) of U.S. drivers now say they would be scared to ride in a fully self-driving vehicle, up from 63% in late 2017. Additionally, two-thirds (63%) of U.S. adults say they would actually feel uncomfortable sharing the road with a self-driving vehicle while walking or biking. “Despite the potential to make roads safer in the long run, consumers have high expectations for safety,” said Greg Brannon, AAA’s…

Testing of the technology continues despite two fatal accidents involving semi-autonomous vehicles occurring within days of each other in March. On April 2, California expanded testing rules to allow remote monitoring instead of having a safety driver in the car. Waymo and another company have since applied to begin testing driverless vehicles in the state. Neighboring Arizona and Nevada also allow testing without a safety driver, but California is the most populous state and is also where many of the companies’ test vehicles are located. States should learn from regulations that foster innovation and safety at the same time. Setbacks…

American roads are full of dangers. According to the Department of Transportation (DoT), 37,461 people died in traffic accidents in the United States in 2016, a 5.6% increase from 2015. This is down from 1970, when roughly 60,000 people died in traffic accidents in the United States. The number of fatalities has decreased thanks to added safety features such as seat belts and airbags, and new technology for autonomous vehicles could save even more by eliminating driver error.Department of Transportation researchers estimate that fully autonomous vehicles (also known as self-driving cars) could reduce road fatalities by up to 94 percent…