Are robotaxis the future? Or instead, the past?
Are robotaxis the future? Or instead, the past?
The news media has expended considerable effort researching and publishing information about the robotaxi business. This channel highlights some of the important articles.
Los Angeles Times reports that once again a Waymo got stuck driving around in a loop. It appears that they have completely failed to fix this reoccurring issue.
SF Gate reports how Jesse Lyu was using Tesla FSD when it drove him right onto some streetcar tracks with a streetcar not to far behind him. And yes, Jesse Lyu ironically is the CEO of Rabbit, the creators of the Rabbit R1, one of the worst reviewed AI gadgets of 2024. Perhaps AI really isn't all there yet, you think?
WSJ reports on how Tesla stock capitalization has been completely disassociated from the business of selling cars. Instead, it is predicated on the myth that they are an AI, robotaxi, and robotics company given that their car sales are actually in decline. Ironically, after this article was published Tesla stock rose over 6%.
SF Chronicle does Waymo's bidding by publishing a fluff piece promoted by Waymo marketing. it is very inappropriate for Waymo to co-opt people with disabilities to try to get good publicity.
NY Times reports that Tesla sales for the year actually dipped for the first time. And the results for the quarter were worse than analysts expected. The lack of sales is precisely why Elon Musk has promoted a fake pivot to AI, autonomous vehicles, and robots - to keep the stock price high!
TechCrunch reports that two robots don't make a right. A food delivery robots, apparently crossing against a red light, was struck by a Waymo, even though the Waymo detected it. Apparently robot lives don't matter, as least to Waymos.
Torque News (yes, that is a real publication) reports that FSD on a Cybertruck is so bad that Progressive Insurance has raised insurance premiums for those who use it frequently. This is an independent refutation of Tesla's claim that FSD is better than a human driver.
SF Chronicle reports on how Waymo expects to handle the inevitable heavily inebriated passengers.
Washington Post provides perhaps the most important article on robotaxis in 2024. The reporter demonstrates how Waymo vehicles are not programmed to follow the law and cede right-of-way. Instead, they intentionally mimic human drivers, including bullying pedestrians and not allowing them to cross in crosswalks.
NY Times reports details on how Tesla sales are slumping. Meanwhile, many investors still believe the hype that Tesla will succeed as a technology company, with robotaxis and robots. Yet is very questionable whether they will succeed in those endeavors.
Teslarati reports on how a Tesla analyst doesn't believe in the hype of the Tesla robotaxi fleet since most Tesla owners would not want to share their vehicles in the first place.
Mission Local reports on how Waymo is trying to inch towards providing service at SF Airport, which would provide a huge financial bonus to the company.
Washington Post reports how robotaxis not having a human driver leads to a large number of scary situations. Apparently their metric of crashes per mile driven is simply not adequate.
TheVerge reports on how the Federal Government is proposing changing standards for autonomous vehicles, but that they expect a great deal of safety related data in return. At the same time, Tesla is trying to avoid having to provide the government with crash data since they have so many crashes.
NBC Bay Area reports on yet another misleading study by Waymo on how their vehicles improve safety, when they simply do not.
