Tag: Autonomous

Renault and Nissan partner with Waymo to develop self-driving services

The Renault-Nissan alliance has signed an exclusive deal with Google’s sister company Waymo to develop self-driving services in France and Japan.The tie-up between the car-makers and the autonomous vehicles company will focus on “all aspects” of driverless mobility services for moving people and goods.The deal does not currently extend to working together to build autonomous vehicles – unlike Waymo’s previous tie-ups with Jaguar Land Rover and Chrysler.

Waymo inks driverless car deal with Renault, Nissan to develop autonomous vehicles

Waymo unveils a self-driving Chrysler Pacifica minivan in Detroit, Michigan, U.S. on January 8, 2017.Brendan McDermid | Reuters Waymo has signed a deal with Renault and Nissan to develop self-driving cars and trucks for use in France, Japan and possibly other countries in Asia, including China, the autonomous car company announced Thursday.
It's the first agreement Waymo has signed to provide its technology and services to automakers working to build their own self-driving cars and services.
Waymo, a subsidiary of Google's parent company Alphabet, is currently testing a small fleet of autonomous vehicles just outside of Phoenix. Those vehicles, which are modified Chrysler Pacifica minivans, are part of Waymo's work to develop autonomous ride-share services. With Renault and Nissan, Waymo's relationship will be more as a provider of technology and services that each automaker will use as they develop their own self-driving vehicles.
“Our Waymo Driver can deliver transformational mobility solutions to safely serve riders and commercial deliveries in France, Japan and other countries,” John Krafcik, CEO of Waymo said in a prepared statement.
Renault and Nissan — which have a close yet strained relationship since the arrest and detention in October of Renault's former CEO Carlos Ghosn, who was also chairman of Nissan — are putting aside their differences when it comes to autonomous vehicles.
The companies said they're creating a joint venture companies to focus exclusively on driverless mobility services.
Thierry Bolloré, CEO of Renault, said in a statement that the deal will put his company, “at the forefront of driverless mobility new business streams in our key strategic markets.”
Hiroto Saikawa, president and CEO of Nissan echoed that confidence.
“Our expertise in the global automotive industry and expertise in strategic partnership will enable us to explore opportunities to grow our portfolio and deliver new value to customers with Waymo, the recognized leader in this space,” he said.
Waymo, formerly known as the Google Self Driving Car project, is considered a leader in autonomous vehicles, analysts and technology executives say.
That lead, however, is far from safe. General Motors' subsidiary Cruise, is expected to publicly launch its first autonomous vehicle later this year. Meanwhile, Uber is also working to develop autonomous ride-share vehicles.

Waymo takes its self-driving car ambitions global in partnership with Renault-Nissan

Waymo has locked in an exclusive partnership with Renault and Nissan to research how commercial autonomous vehicles might work for passengers and packages in France and Japan. This exclusive partnership has a deadline — the public announcement says it will last for “an initial period.” Waymo nor the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance provided details on when it… Continue reading Waymo takes its self-driving car ambitions global in partnership with Renault-Nissan

California has let two Chinese startups offer robotaxis to the public

China’s driverless cars are coming for passengers in the United States. AutoX and Pony.ai just became the first Chinese companies allowed to offer self-driving robotaxis in the state of California, according to notices posted on the website of the California Public Utilities Commission this week. Started in 2016 by Princeton University professor Jianxiong Xiao, called… Continue reading California has let two Chinese startups offer robotaxis to the public

GROUPE RENAULT AND NISSAN SIGN EXCLUSIVE ALLIANCE DEAL WITH WAYMO TO EXPLORE DRIVERLESS MOBILITY SERVICES

 Groupe Renault and Nissan to become the first automotive manufacturers to explore driverless mobility services with Waymo in France and Japan Exclusive agreement to initially focus on driverless mobility services for people and goods in France and Japan   Groupe Renault, Nissan Motor Co., and Waymo, leaders in their respective fields, have entered into an… Continue reading GROUPE RENAULT AND NISSAN SIGN EXCLUSIVE ALLIANCE DEAL WITH WAYMO TO EXPLORE DRIVERLESS MOBILITY SERVICES

Renault, Nissan join Waymo in exploring driverless services in France, Japan

DETROIT/PARIS (Reuters) – French automaker Renault SA, its Japanese partner Nissan Motor Co and tech giant Alphabet Inc’s Waymo are exploring a partnership to develop and use self-driving vehicles to transport people and goods in France and Japan, the companies said on Thursday. FILE PHOTO: The logos of car manufacturers Renault and Nissan are seen… Continue reading Renault, Nissan join Waymo in exploring driverless services in France, Japan

Self-driving car startup Argo AI is giving researchers free access to its HD maps

Argo AI is releasing curated data along with high-definition maps to researchers for free, the latest company in the autonomous vehicle industry to open-source some of the information it has captured while developing and testing self-driving cars. The aim, the Ford Motor-backed company says, is to give academic researchers the ability to study the impact… Continue reading Self-driving car startup Argo AI is giving researchers free access to its HD maps

Walmart to test self-driving delivery from warehouse to warehouse

A Wal-Mart employee pushes grocery carts at a store in Miami.Getty ImagesWhen most people think about how self-driving cars will help retailers, the image that comes to mind often is a robot car whisking a delivery to a customer's door, but according to an article in Bloomberg the reality — at least in the near term — will be different.
Analysts cited by the news service estimate the market for transporting goods on a fixed route from warehouse to warehouse using driverless vehicles could reach $1 trillion. These miles in the middle help get goods closer to their final destination.
Walmart, which has experienced a boom in online sales, will begin using robot cars to transport goods in between warehouses, in the hopes that the company will be able to cut costs and increase efficiency.
Walmart spokeswoman Molly Blakeman told CNBC the retailer is working with its partner Gatik, a self-driving vehicle startup, to test out a self-driving vehicle. It will travel along a two-mile route in Bentonville, Arkansas between two stores.
“We are working with city and state officials to obtain the approval we need to operate and plan to start the pilot program this summer with the aim being to learn about the logistics of adding AVs into our ecosystem, operation and process changes, and more opportunities to incorporate this emerging technology,” Blakeman said.
Consumers have grown wary of robot-taxis due to accidents like the killing of a pedestrian last year by Uber's new test car, Bloomberg reported.
The robo-trucks also take out the human element, eliminating the hassle of human passengers and the cost to create a passenger compartment in the first place.
With the rise of online shopping, the robots also fill a huge demand for truck drivers. A shortage of drivers has led to 60,000 unfilled long-haul positions, according to data Bloomberg cited from the American Trucking Association.
Read the full Bloomberg story here.
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