Autonomous cars are set to take over the world’s roads, transforming the way we travel.
Leading the pack is Robocar, a futuristic self-driving electric vehicle from British start-up Roborace.
Roborace demonstrated its robot’s capabilities by taking the car to 282.42 km/h (175.49 mph) – an average confirmed by the UK Timing Association – at RAF Elvington, Yorkshire, UK, claiming the record for fastest autonomous car.
‘You can enjoy having the car to yourself’
Waymo, the self-driving division of Alphabet, is about to put more passengers its fully driverless Chrysler Pacifica minivans. The company emailed its customers in the suburbs of Phoenix, Arizona, to let them know that “completely driverless Waymo cars are on the way.” It’s a sign that Waymo is growing confident enough in its technology to increase the frequency at which it allows passengers to ride in autonomous vehicles without a safety driver behind the wheel.
Continue reading… “Waymo tells riders that ‘completely driverless’ vehicles are on the way”
A UPS autonomous drone carries medical supplies.
UPS announces an agreement with CVS to develop a drone delivery service for prescription drugs.
UPS gets the first FAA approval to operate a drone delivery service earlier this month.
FedEx completes its first residential drone delivery under a pilot program last week.
Continue reading… “UPS partners with CVS to develop drone delivery service for prescription drugs”
For many people, the word “automation” conjures up dystopian scenes of humans versus machines. A future in which people set aside our differences to oppose the sleek, metallic products of our own engineering. Few but growth-minded business types get a warm-and-fuzzy feeling of optimism when the word “automation” comes up. And for good reason.
There’s virtually no job that won’t be touched by artificial intelligence (A.I.) and robotics. According to a recent Ball State study, robots and A.I. accounted for around 87 percent of job loss in the United States between 2000 and 2010. PricewaterhouseCoopers recently estimated that 38 percent of American jobs may be at risk by the 2030s. And in 2016, a 55-page report titled from the Executive Office of the President painted a similarly dire picture, warning that millions of workers may be displaced.
Continue reading… “Robots aren’t coming to steal your job. They’re coming to improve it”
While I prefer to walk my dogs, there have been times when the weather has been bad, or I’m just too tired at the end of the day, and they end up pooping in the yard. If you let your dog do its business on your lawn, then this new invention could be a godsend.
The Beetl is a fully-autonomous robot that drives around your yard, looking for piles of poop. It then scoops them up into a container for easy and clean disposal. The robot uses computer vision to detect piles of dog doo, as well as to avoid obstacles. It can also be programmed to work strictly within the boundaries of your lawn.
Continue reading… “The Beetl robot is designed to pick up dog poop”
Alphabet -owned drone delivery spin-out Wing is starting to service U.S. customers, after becoming the first drone delivery company to get the federal go-ahead to do so earlier this year. Wing is working with FedEx Express and Walgreens on this pilot, and their first customers are Michael and Kelly Collver, who will get a “cough and cold pack,” which includes Tylenol, cough drops, facial tissues, Emergen-C and bottled water (do people who have colds need bottled water?).
The Collvers are receiving their package in Christianburg, Va., which is where Wing and Walgreens will run this inaugural pilot of the drone delivery service. Walgreens gets a noteworthy credit in the bargain, becoming the first U.S. retailer to do a store-to-customer doorstep delivery via drone, while FedEx will be the first logistics provider to deliver an e-commerce drone delivery with a separate shipment.
Continue reading… “Alphabet’s Wing begins making first commercial drone deliveries in the US”
A self-driving bus with Baidu’s Apollo autonomous driving open platform is displayed at the 2018 Baidu World conference. © Reuters
City of Wuhan also picks two other operators for network using Huawei 5G
CHONGQING — Chinese search engine giant Baidu is among three companies to win a license from the city of Wuhan to operate a commercial transportation service using self-driving vehicles, in a first for China.
Authorities hail the move as the start of the world’s first 5G-based driverless commercial service.
Continue reading… “Baidu wins China’s first commercial license for self-driving buses”
A man holds a door to a Didi self-driving car during last month’s World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC) in Shanghai. Picture: REUTERS
Ride-hailing giant Didi Chuxing plans to start using self-driving vehicles to pick up passengers in Shanghai and hopes to expand the scheme outside China by 2021.
Local authorities in Shanghai last week issued licences — the first in China — for operational tests of smart and connected cars with passengers in them, that would pave the way for commercial robotaxis in the future.
The licences were given to car-hailing ride service Didi Chuxing as well as to car manufacturer SAIC Motor and BMW that allow them to conduct autonomous driving projects in real urban scenarios.
Each of the three companies are permitted to run 50 vehicles for pilot programs including robotaxis, unmanned deliveries and other autonomous driving services. The licence holders can increase the number of test vehicles after six months if there are no traffic violations.
Continue reading… “Self-driving taxis roll out in Shanghai”
Are London cabbies’ days numbered?
SELF-DRIVING taxis have hit the streets of London for the first time during a week-long trial in the capital.
The culmination of a 30-month development process lead by the government and industry-supported the DRIVEN autonomous vehicle technology consortium, the tests saw a collection of Ford Mondeo-based test cars complete short runs on a pre-programmed course on public roads through Stratford, in the east of the city, a short distance away from the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, venue for the 2012 Games.
While this isn’t the first time autonomous vehicles have been tested in an urban environment (the same self-driving research vehicles were put through their preliminary paces in Oxford earlier in the year), DRIVEN said these tests have been “the most ambitious” yet, due to the demands that come with driving in a megacity.
Continue reading… “Autonomous taxis have made their driverless debut in London”
South Korean carmaker Hyundai Motor Group will start mass production of self-driving cars within the next five years, said Chung Euisun, the heir to the auto giant, as he made a hefty investment in a joint venture the company established with Aptiv on Sept. 23.
At a luncheon session held in New York with Korean correspondents on the same day he signed the $4 billion deal with the US software developer, Chung said the company would apply the autonomous driving technology to be developed jointly with Aptiv to Hyundai cars starting in 2024. The executive vice chairman, who holds the second-highest position in the carmaker — his father, Chairman Chung Mong-koo, is No. 1 — said the company had decided to hold the same number of shares as Aptiv, rather than be a minority shareholder in the venture, in an effort to transform itself from a mere car manufacturer into a future mobility solutions provider.
“We expect the era of autonomous vehicles to come early, but it will be possible for customers to go anywhere they want in a driverless car after 2030,” said Chung, who has taken the lead in the absence of his ill father.
Continue reading… “Hyundai to start mass production of driverless cars in 2024”
Over the last few years, the autonomous vehicle industry has grown rapidly. Here are thoughts and stats from Indeed for the top companies hiring for autonomous vehicle talent.
When news about autonomous vehicles filled headlines a few years ago, it was characterized by bold claims: that entire lanes would be dedicated to hands-free driving by 2020 and door-to-door autonomous trips would be possible around 2030, for example.
Since then, the frenzy about an autonomous takeover of our personal transportation system has waned. But a new reality has set in: Autonomous vehicles are already operating in a number of industries, such as transportation, farming, and small deliveries. While it may not be driving the news cycle, the work on this technology hasn’t slowed down.
Continue reading… “Top companies hiring for autonomous vehicle talent”
Lower costs equals more opportunities.
A little startup in Seattle is about to flip the pizza business. Literally.
The company is called Picnic and for the past few years it’s been operating under the radar while it develops a propriety robot that makes pizzas. A lot of pizzas. Like, 300 pizzas in an hour.
According to Geekwire’s James Thorne, who visited the company to take a peek at the pizza-making robots himself, he was surprised to find that the machines were far from industrial-looking. “Instead,” he wrote. “It looked like a white, kitchen-sized iPhone. It could theoretically be installed in a food truck.”
Continue reading… “How a robot that makes 300 pizzas an hour will create more jobs”
By delving into the futuring techniques of Futurist Thomas Frey, you’ll embark on an enlightening journey.
Learn More about this exciting program.