As part of the Global Climate Action Summit, which brings together a variety of parties to discuss climate action opportunities, self-driving car startup Zoox is offering autonomous rides in San Francisco this week.
The company has partnered with the Fairmont hotel in San Francisco to transport select summit guests between the Fairmont and Moscone Center in Zoox’s self-driving Toyota Highlander test cars. Guests that ride in the cars will be determined by Zoox, Fairmont and the Summit.
The objective of the tests is to showcase the potential of Zoox’s zero-emission autonomous technology—which hasn’t been fully realized yet—to guests.
Mobility
Mobility
Transdev launching autonomous school shuttle at Florida's Babcock Ranch
This fall, Transdev will debut the first autonomous school shuttle in the world at Babcock Ranch—the first fully solar-powered community in the country—in Florida.
Transdev, which is the mobility partner for Babcock Ranch, is completing more than two months of testing on school shuttle routes that will augment existing autonomous options within the community.
During the pilot-program, Transdev will offer the service to Babcock Neighborhood School (BNS) students who live within Babcock Ranch. Transdev will use the pilot to evaluate rider behavior and demand.
Toyota extends collaboration with Uber on autonomous vehicle technology; announces investment
With the aim of “advancing and bringing to market autonomous ride-sharing as a mobility service at scale,” Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) and Uber have announced that they will expand their collaboration.
Through this expansion, technology from each company will be integrated into purpose-built Toyota vehicles that will be deployed on Uber’s ride-sharing network.
In addition to the announcement of its expanded collaboration with Uber, Toyota has also announced that it will invest $500 million in the ride-hailing service.
Hyundai Motor makes history in South Korea with autonomously navigated semi-trailer truck
On August 21, Hyundai Motor Company completed South Korea's first domestic highway journey with an autonomously navigated semi-trailer truck.
Hyundai showcased its “innovative technological advancement in future mobility” when its Xcient truck drove approximately 40 kilometers on the highway between Uiwang and Incheon while carrying a large semi-trailer simulating cargo transportation.
“This successful demonstration proves that innovative autonomous driving technology can be used to transform the trade logistics industry,” says Maik Ziegler, Ph.D., Director of Commercial Vehicle R&D Strategy Group at Hyundai Motor Company.
Drive.ai's self-driving vehicles to begin operating in Arlington, Texas starting in October
A few weeks after launching a self-driving pilot program available to the public in Frisco, Texas, Drive.ai and the city of Arlington, Texas have signed a contract initiating a one-year self-driving program for Arlington residents, visitors, and anyone who’s interested in taking a ride in one of Drive.ai’s self-driving vehicles.
Expected to start on October 19, the program will add another transportation option within Arlington's Entertainment District.
“Our partnership with the City of Arlington represents another important milestone: this program marks our first revenue,” Drive.ai says in a company blog post.
Navya and Keolis Canada announce Canada's first autonomous shuttle pilot project on public roads
Navya and Keolis Canada recently announced the launch of a 12-month autonomous shuttle pilot project, which is set to begin at the end of this month in Candiac, Quebec, Canada.
During the year-long pilot, Navya’s AUTONOM shuttle will operate in real traffic conditions on public roads, which will be a first in Canada. In an effort to determine how to best meet user's mobility needs, especially during their home-work trips, the shuttle will carry users on a two-kilometer route, with several stops throughout the city.
FiveAI to test autonomous cars in London starting next year
According to TechCrunch, FiveAI, which is a startup in the United Kingdom seeking to deliver a fully autonomous shared transport service for Europe’s cities, will conduct its first on-street trial in 2019.
The trial is aimed at commuters in the London outer boroughs of Bromley and Croydon, and will initially start with a 10-month “data gathering” exercise that includes five FiveAI vehicles—equipped with drivers—collecting information about road conditions, the movement of pedestrians and various vehicles, and other variables to help train its artificial intelligence platform.
University of Western Australia testing autonomous bus on campus
Starting August 12, an autonomous bus will begin operating on the campus of the University of Western Australia (UWA).
The bus, which has been supplied by EasyMile, will be trialed over the course of a nine-day period, including Open Day.
“The trial will be used for teaching and research but it will also provide input into ways we can plan for a sustainable campus of the future,” says UWA Vice-Chancellor Professor Dawn Freshwater.
“The University is spread over a wide area and it is interesting to investigate if vehicles like this could be used in the future as a sustainable transport link between places.”
Self-driving truck startup Kodiak Robotics to expand its team and develop products using recent funding
A self-driving truck startup called Kodiak Robotics has raised $40 million in Series A financing.
The company will use the funds to expand its team—it currently has about 10 employees—as well as for product development.
In an interview with TechCrunch, Don Burnette, co-founder and CEO of Kodiak Robotics, and Paz Eshel, the company’s other co-founder and COO, shared the basic vision for their company: “use self-driving technology to ease the current strain on the freight market.”
Sacramento and Phantom Auto partner to test autonomous vehicles in the city
The City of Sacramento, California has signed a deal with Phantom Auto to test autonomous vehicles in the city.
The vehicles will be monitored by remote “drivers” sitting at computers in Silicon Valley, where Phantom Auto is based. The people monitoring the vehicles will be able to take control of the vehicle if its on-board computer system can’t figure out how to navigate the road.
“I view this as another signature moment for our city,” says Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg, via the Sacramento Bee. “It is a clear sign we are willing to step up and show the state and the country that we want to be on the forefront of new technologies.”