Context
Silicon Valley is known for selling dreams!
One of the most notable dreams was to create driverless cars.
Back in 2009, Google initiated a project to build autonomous cars. In 2016, the program became an individual company Waymo that promised everyone a future where there will be vehicles with no one in the driver’s seat.
Fast forward to 2021, the future has not been fulfilled even slightly.
Tech giants like Google, Apple, and automakers like General Motors, Toyota, are also competing for the pie but the results are not encouraging.
Too much R&D
Any nascent technology demands a lot of time to be invested in research and development to make the tech better and more reliable.
All of the R&D comes along with huge piles of cash burn which makes the industry unviable for many small players. Both Uber & Lyft exited the space because it was becoming a burden on their financial position.
Overpromise & Underdeliver!
All the players have been overly optimistic in setting deadlines for launching the product in the market & conveniently delaying indefinitely when the time comes.
No matter what, it’s just an algorithm that powers the vehicle & one cannot be dependent on it for safety.
Challenges!
The biggest challenge that the players are facing is understanding human behavior.
The algorithms developed are capable of detecting vehicles but cannot predict what might happen next.
Due to this concern, the self-driving car by Uber killed a woman in the American state of Arizona.
Long time
The time when driverless technology becomes ubiquitous is way ahead of us. All the hype around this fancy development has simply failed!
Bottom line: The venture is harder, slower, and costlier than anybody thought.
When will self-driving cars become a dominant form of transportation?
You tell.