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DeeperML - #autonomousvehicles
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Kirsten Korosec@TechCrunch
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Waymo, the self-driving car division of Google's parent company Alphabet, is significantly scaling up its robotaxi production capabilities. The company is ramping up its manufacturing facility in Mesa, Arizona, a suburb of Phoenix. This expansion aims to increase the number of autonomous vehicles it can deploy, with the goal of achieving 250,000 driverless rides per week. The Mesa factory is strategically located near Waymo's existing robotaxi markets and service areas in Phoenix, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Austin.
The company has been working with Magna for years to build these vehicles and recently received its last delivery of Jaguar I-Pace SUVs. These I-Pace vehicles are being retrofitted with Waymo's self-driving system, including custom computing, cameras, lidar, and radar, at the Arizona facility. Waymo currently has 1,500 commercial robotaxis in operation and plans to add 2,000 more vehicles to its fleet by 2026, bringing the total to 3,500. The Mesa factory is also preparing for the integration of Waymo's sixth-generation self-driving system into the Zeekr RT minivan. In addition to expanding its fleet size, Waymo is also planning to launch or begin preparations for robotaxi operations in Atlanta, Miami, and Washington, D.C., as well as other cities, by 2026. Waymo emphasized a new process designed to speed up the production-to-validation-to-public use process, noting that the AVs can drive themselves out of the facility and directly into service, picking up passengers in as little as 30 minutes after leaving the factory.
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@thelastdriverlicenseholder.com
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Waymo and Toyota have announced a preliminary agreement to explore the development of autonomous vehicles for private ownership. This collaboration aims to leverage Waymo’s autonomous driving technology, already in use in its robotaxi service across five US regions, into personally owned Toyota vehicles. The goal is to enhance the next generation of Toyota vehicles with autonomous capabilities, marking a significant step towards making self-driving technology available to individual consumers.
Waymo’s robotaxis are currently operating in several US cities, completing approximately 250,000 driverless and paid trips per week. While Waymo has established partnerships with multiple automakers like Hyundai and Jaguar Land Rover, this collaboration with Toyota specifically targets the integration of autonomous driving tech into vehicles intended for private purchase. Toyota aims to combine its vehicle expertise with Waymo's autonomous technology, potentially accelerating the development and deployment of self-driving cars for the average consumer. The companies have not yet announced any specific timelines or prices for the first autonomous vehicle resulting from this partnership. However, the collaboration reflects a shared vision of improving road safety and increasing mobility for all. The discussions also include exploring the use of Toyota vehicles within Waymo’s existing robotaxi fleet, with support from Woven by Toyota.
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