Slashdot Mirror
Uber's Self-Driving Trucks Division Is Dead (techcrunch.com)
Uber is shuttering its self-driving unit, reports TechCrunch. The company will reportedly stop development of self-driving trucks and instead focus its efforts on self-driving cars. "We recently took the important step of returning to public roads in Pittsburgh, and as we look to continue that momentum, we believe having our entire team's energy and expertise focused on this effort is the best path forward," Eric Meyhofer, head of Uber Advanced Technologies Group, said in an emailed statement. From the report: Uber Freight, a business unit that helps truck drivers connect with shipping companies, is unaffected by this decision. "Rather than having two groups working side by side, focused on different vehicle platforms, I want us instead collaborating as one team, according to an email reviewed by TechCrunch that was sent by Meyhofer to employees. "I know we're all super proud of what the Trucks team has accomplished, and we continue to see the incredible promise of self-driving technology applied to moving freight across the country. But we believe delivering on self-driving for passenger applications first, and then bringing it to freight applications down the line, is the best path forward. For now, we need the focus of one team, with one clear objective." The company will pivot employees focused on self-driving trucks to other work that revolves around self-driving technology.
They know they'll never develop viable self-driving technology.
They need to keep pretending they can, as it's the end-goal to turn a profit on their main business, ride-sharing.
They'll lose investors if they give up on that. The company is still running at a loss, without constant investment it's going to collapse.
Until that time, it remains vapor.
Also good luck with your 'better driver than a teenager' advertising campaign. I don't think you'll sell many.
John McAfee 'It was like that time I hired that Bangkok prostitute; to do my taxes, while I fucked my accountant'
Yes you do. And that might not be possible to do. It isn't there yet, and it might never be. The next 20% needs to be solved. You guys are way too optimistic about this stuff.
Autonomous vehicles have rounded the corner and already arrived. Right now they're doing, you know, autonomous driving - the kind that doesn't require a human driver.
These are merely Class 4 AVs, only capable of driving in a limited area under specific conditions, so still a long way from 100%. But those "specific conditions" include full city driving among pedestrians, buses, trucks, pets, distracted drivers, roadworks.. clearly an already-useful percentage of human capability.
Why would anyone engrave "Elbereth"?
It was probably to be expected seeing how all of Otto's tech was built on stuff the founder had pilfered from Google's self-driving car project after leaving it and when Google found out (IIRC trough a shared supplier accidentally cc:ing them some of their own documents) they got the courts to put a stop to using any of it.
"Why should I want to make anything up? Life's bad enough as it is without wanting to invent any more of it."
That means fewer people will be.
And before you rant about how autonomous cars and trucks will save lives because human drivers suck, I agree. I just want competent companies building them, not Uber.