WILL OUR GRANDKIDS EVER DRIVE A CAR?
Most likely, the answer is someplace in between. Drive if they must, but otherwise the car will get you there. Technology is finally getting to an inflection point on self-driving cars. The promise has been there for many years, and thanks to the evolving AI computed power advancements, we are on the doorsteps to true driverless cars. Yep, no pedal controls or steering wheel needed. Just punch in your destination and voila, the car drives you there.
WAYMO/GOOGLE?
Waymo is a subsidiary of Google. Their self-driving efforts have been here for over 15 years. They have been working in the background developing car tech and computers to interpret and execute what’s needed to get us from point A to point B without a human. As of now you can use Waymo’s service in Los Angeles, San Fransico, Austin, Phoenix and just arriving in Atlanta. Waymo uses retro fitted vans. Waymo started out with Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid vans and is just now retiring that fleet and moving to a Jaguar SUV for future vehicles. The new Jaguars will have Waymo’s 5th generation of hardware to run the vehicles. The estimated cost of a Waymo equipped vehicle is $100,000. Uber is partnering with Waymo in Atlanta so you can use your Uber app to hail a Waymo vehicle. As with all Waymo efforts, Atlanta will be Geo Fenced which limits the ride to certain geographic locations.
TESLA ROBOTAXI?
Just 2 days ago Tesla rolled out its Robotaxi service in Austin Texas. So far, most reviews of the service have been 5 stars. Like Waymo, Tesla’s service is Geo Fenced and just for extra caution there is a human monitor riding shotgun. Eventually Tesla aims to expand their self-diving service to many cities just as Waymo is doing. Unlike Waymo, Tesla’s hardware/software combination is in all the cars it sells. If you own a new Tesla and sign up for FSD (full self-driving) the car will drive you where you want to go, but you are still responsible and must pay attention. Tesla’s have an inside camera just below the rear-view mirror and a nanny system via the computer screen to keep the driver attentive. Tesla is developing a Cyber Cab 2-seater with no controls. The Cyber Cab is supposed to roll out next year sometime.
Unlike Waymo’s service Tesla relies on cameras with no radar. This, and the other ways Tesla is developing self-driving, gives the company a huge vehicle cost advantage.
Amazon has a self-driving effort called Zook set to start in Las Vegas later this year. They will use purpose-built taxis.
It is a tech titan race.
Potentially trillions of dollars are at stake. Tesla ditched their old way of developing self-driving 4 or 5 years ago. They are 100% committed to AI driven, machine learning, self-driving dominance. Waymo has been developing self-driving slowly with a more hardware intensive approach using Lidar, a type of radar. Just recently some leakages of comments and observations have basically revealed that Tesla has a huge database advantage for developing self-driving. Waymo on the other hand is providing an estimated 100,000 rides every day. It really is a two-horse race right now. The Chinese have efforts as well, and they will steal technology as needed to be in the race. Government bureaucracy is needed; hope it does not slow the pace of innovation. Just last week there was a spat between Tesla and NATSA (North American Transportation Services Association) over what the regulators need to know. You can bet anything the NATSA knows the Chinese will know the next day. Protection of intellectual property must be done.
The race is on.
Thanks, Andy McClung CFP TM
Anan Ashraf Yahoo.com/ Riddit.com/Wikipedia/Justin Westbrook motortrend.com/google,com search
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Wall Street Journal June 23 2025