robotaxi
Waymo issues second recall after robotaxi hit telephone pole
Waymo has voluntarily issued a software recall to all 672 of its Jaguar I-Pace robotaxis after one of them collided with a telephone pole. This is Waymo’s second recall. The…
Inside Fisker’s collapse and robotaxis come to more US cities
Welcome back to TechCrunch Mobility — your central hub for news and insights on the future of transportation. Sign up here for free — just click TechCrunch Mobility! Your usual…
Feds add nine more incidents to Waymo robotaxi investigation
Federal safety regulators have discovered nine more incidents that raise questions about the safety of Waymo’s self-driving vehicles operating in Phoenix and San Francisco. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration…
A human safety operator will be behind the wheel during this phase of testing, according to the company.
Hyundai is spending close to $1B to keep self-driving startup Motional alive
Hyundai has agreed to spend nearly $1 billion on Motional, an investment that will give the automaker a majority stake while providing the self-driving startup with the necessary capital to…
Tesla earnings week spotlights EV price cuts, ‘balls to the wall’ autonomy push
Tesla investors, still digesting a 43% drop in share price since the beginning of the year, are gearing up for what will likely be unimpressive financial results for the first quarter…
6 Waymo robotaxis block traffic to San Francisco freeway on-ramp
Waymo can operate on San Francisco freeways without a human driver, but the company is still only testing on freeways with a human driver in the front seat.
Waymo, the self-driving company under Alphabet, began testing its robotaxis in Atlanta on Tuesday, adding another city to its ever-expanding testing and deployment domain. Over the next few months, Waymo…
Waymo to launch commercial robotaxi service in Austin by end of the year
Waymo will begin offering a robotaxi service to the public in Los Angeles this week and in Austin by the end of the year, the company’s co-CEO Tekedra Mawakana said…
Waymo will start letting its autonomous vehicles traverse Austin without a safety operator behind the wheel as of tomorrow, a crucial step before the company opens the program up to…
Waymo’s application to expand California robotaxi operations paused by regulators
Waymo’s application to expand its robotaxi service in Los Angeles and San Mateo counties has been suspended for 120 days by the California Public Utilities Commission’s Consumer Protection and Enforcement…
Cruise names first chief safety officer following crash and controversy
Cruise has named its first “chief safety officer” as part of the company’s effort to rehabilitate itself following an incident — and ensuing controversy — last year that left a…
A Waymo robotaxi was vandalized and burned in San Francisco
A Waymo robotaxi was vandalized and then set on fire by a crowd of people Saturday evening in San Francisco’s Chinatown neighborhood. The incident is the latest encounter between driverless…
Over here at TechCrunch, our time is often spent finding and reporting on the next new new thing in mobility, from autonomous drones and electric air taxis to self-driving trucks…
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Facing roadblocks, China’s robotaxi darlings apply the brakes
A few years ago, robotaxis were the darlings of venture capitalists in China. A cadre of audacious startups, including Deeproute.ai, WeRide.ai, Pony.ai and Momenta reeled in hundreds of millions of dollars to fuel their costly ambitions. With pockets overflowing, they spent generously on building self-driving vehicle fleets. Their geeky executives,…
Waymo launches curbside robotaxi pickup at Phoenix airport
Select Waymo One riders can now get picked up or dropped off by the company’s robotaxis curbside at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. Waymo became the first autonomous vehicle operator…
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Cruise slashes 24% of self-driving car workforce in sweeping layoffs
Cruise, the embattled GM self-driving car subsidiary, is laying off 900 employees, or about 24% of its workforce, TechCrunch has exclusively learned. The layoffs are part of a plan to slash costs and attempt to revamp the company following an October 2 incident that left a pedestrian stuck under and…
Cruise leaders booted following initial safety probe into robotaxi incident
Nine Cruise managers and executives who worked in commercial operations, legal and policy department have left GM’s self-driving vehicle subsidiary following an initial internal analysis of the October 2 incident…
Cruise faces fines in California for withholding key details in robotaxi accident
Cruise keeps getting kicked while it’s down. The General Motors-owned robotaxi company may face fines and sanctions after failing to disclose details of an October 2 incident — specifically that…
Bruised Cruise shifts gears in scaled-down robotaxi comeback plan
Cruise executives are taking a measured business approach that preserves cash and improves safety culture in an attempt to put GM’s troubled autonomous vehicle subsidiary on the right path. The…
Motional and Hyundai to jointly build IONIQ 5 robotaxi in Singapore
Hyundai Motor Group and Motional, the Aptiv-Hyundai joint venture aimed at commercializing autonomous vehicles, announced plans Tuesday to co-develop production-ready versions of the all-electric IONIQ 5 robotaxi at the automaker’s…
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The Wild West of robotaxis: Will Texas be a regulatory haven or chaos unleashed?
All eyes might be on the California robotaxi market, but Texas is the one shaping up to be the next hot testbed of the technology — and regulatory fights that could follow. The Lone Star State has been home to autonomous vehicle testing, particularly with trucks, for years now. However,…
GM inserts exec at Cruise as safety review expands, manual self driving paused
General Motors is taking a more active role in shaping the safety culture at Cruise, following a string of incidents that prompted California regulators to suspend permits that allowed the…
California regulators weigh a do-over for Cruise’s robotaxi permit
California regulators have issued an order to halt the implementation of Cruise’s permit to charge for robotaxi rides across San Francisco 24/7 as they consider the city’s request for a…
Cruise begins layoffs, starting with workers who supported driverless operations
Cruise, the GM self-driving car subsidiary, has started laying off contingent workers after pausing all of it driverless operations and losing key commercial permits that allowed it to operate a…
Cruise recalls entire fleet after robotaxi ran over, dragged pedestrian
GM self-driving car subsidiary Cruise issued a recall for 950 vehicles equipped with its autonomous vehicle software following a crash that left a pedestrian, who had initially been hit by…
GM halts production of Cruise Origin robotaxi amid suspended operations
Cruise is pausing production of its purpose-built robotaxi, the Origin — the autonomous vehicle company’s latest setback amid suspended operations and increased scrutiny from regulators. Forbes first reported the news,…
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Los Angeles demands robotaxi rulemaking powers
Mayor Karen Bass says Los Angeles — not a state agency — should have the power to decide how robotaxi companies expand in the city. The impact of the mayor’s calls may extend well beyond LA.
Two of California’s biggest robotaxi opponents join forces
Two of the biggest groups to oppose robotaxi expansion in California are now formally working together. Teamsters 856, which is tied to one of the longest-standing labor unions in the…
Waymo driverless vehicles are now available through Uber, starting first in Phoenix
Phoenix-area Uber users can now hail a Waymo driverless vehicle. The two companies today announced the launch of the joint service, which we first reported in May 2023. To use…
