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Apple Says It Is Working On Self-Driving Cars (theguardian.com)
For the first time, Apple has said that it is indeed working on technology to develop self-driving cars. The company confirmed late last week its previously secret initiative in a statement to the U.S. highway regulator. From a report on The Guardian: "The company is investing heavily in the study of machine learning and automation, and is excited about the potential of automated systems in many areas, including transportation," said the letter from Steve Kenner, Apple's director of product integrity, to the head of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). The letter offered no details of the project, instead highlighting the "significant societal benefits of automated vehicles," which it described as a life-saving technology, potentially preventing millions of car crashes and thousands of fatalities each year.In a statement to Financial Times (might be paywalled), a spokesperson for Apple said, "We've provided comments to NHTSA because Apple is investing heavily in machine learning and autonomous systems. There are many potential applications for these technologies, including the future of transportation, so we want to work with NHTSA to help define the best practices for the industry."
....and I still don't care.
The very first line in the linked article:
Apple has said for the first time that it is working on technology to develop self-driving cars.
And in more detail:
The company is investing heavily in the study of machine learning and automation, and is excited about the potential of automated systems in many areas, including transportation,” said the letter from Steve Kenner, Apple’s director of product integrity, to the head of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).
The difference is that they have not said they're making cars in the same way they do not make TVs. But they do make hardware/software that will drive your TV - so to speak.
Just as auto makers can make 'carplay' http://www.apple.com/ios/carpl... compatible cars, you can imagine they might one day make 'carpilot' compatible cars.
Most people call those leases.
There are two types of people in the world: Those who crave closure
Slashdot Editors / owners / etc.:
o Please stop supporting paywalled sites.
o Please stop supporting sites with closed comment sections.
These things are bad for the web and the web's denizens -- of course not for the ethically crippled sites themselves, as we are their product, and both payment up and dissent down are multipliers to their bread and butter.
The paywalled sites are monetizing the news, and that almost always makes for biased reporting.
The closed comment sections make for echo chambers, and that creates an environment where fake news and agitprop flourish.
Same thing to my fellow slashdotters: if you support bad actors in bad behaviors, they will naturally persist. So think about that before you click through the next time someone thrusts a paywalled or comment-bereft site in your face.
Thanks for reading.
I've fallen off your lawn, and I can't get up.