This week, Uber launched its most promising project: Self-driving taxi’s!
Don’t get too excited. The first handful of self-driving Ubers is currently only available to the lucky residents of downtown Pittsburgh. In this pilot-stage of the project, the cars come with an engineer on the driver’s seat and a co-pilot to take down observations. Passengers taking this experimental taxi get their ride for free, instead of paying $1,05 per mile.
Uber co-founder and CEO Travis Kalanick mentions that in the long run, prices will fall so low that the per-mile cost of travel, even for long trips in rural areas, will be lower in a driverless Uber than in a private car.
And that is where things become interesting!
Imagine every time you need a ride, you push a button on your mobile phone and an autonomous car appears. Who needs a car, when a driverless Uber is more affordable than owning a private car? Technology poses the question of whether it’s necessary to own an automobile. Already, “millennials” appear to value car ownership less than previous generations do.
“That could be seen as a threat,” says Volvo Cars CEO Hakan Samuelsson. “We see it as an opportunity.” Earlier this year, Uber and Volvo signed a $300 million pact to develop a fully autonomous car that will be ready for the road by 2021. But the Volvo deal isn’t exclusive. Besides, Uber plans to install self-driving kits into existing vehicles. With its a plan to build an autonomous vehicle empire, Uber aims to replace more than 1 million human drivers with self-driving cars as soon as possible.
With the rise of autonomous vehicles and car sharing services, McKinsey recently predicted that by 2050 we can do with 75% less cars!
Has Uber, disruptor of the taxi-industry, given the start signal for the disruption of the car industry?
Sources:
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2016-08-18/uber-s-first-self-driving-fleet-arrives-in-pittsburgh-this-month-is06r7on?utm_content=business
https://www.nrc.nl/nieuws/2015/08/21/stap-jij-straks-in-een-zelfrijdende-uber-tesla-taxi-niet-zo-snel-a1495264
http://www.mckinsey.com/industries/automotive-and-assembly/our-insights/a-road-map-to-the-future-for-the-auto-industry
http://www.mckinsey.com/industries/automotive-and-assembly/our-insights/ten-ways-autonomous-driving-could-redefine-the-automotive-world
Thanks for your post Lotte!
Not only these are exciting news for the technology enthusiasts out there, but it also represents savings in a near future for taxi passengers, as you said in your post.
We can also expect better route planning (leading to less traffic and less time lost), lower fuel consumption due to driving optimization and even higher speed limits. The best thing about this innovation is probably the elimination of the possibility of human error, which will prevent 57% of accidents and save lifes.
However, there are also some important concerns to take into account when evaluating a technology like this. When applied to the taxi market, one can expect a decrease in the number of jobs available. In the future, people won’t need drivers, and the job market will certainly suffer from an adaptation period. Plus, the use of such a technology imposes a very important question: what if the self-driving car system is hacked?
Source: http://www.visualcapitalist.com/pros-and-cons-self-driving-cars/
Thank you Lotte for introducing this interesting topic. I see lots of benefits in this new kind of taxis. I would really use a self-driving taxi if the prices per mile drop very low. Also the environment takes advantages of the decrease in the number of existing cars.
But I am afraid that people, myself included, are scared to use a self-driving taxi. Isn’t it really strange to be driven by an empty seat? And who is responsible if an accident happens? I think people first have to see that a self-driving taxi really works before they step in one themselves. When using a self-driving taxi is more common, it will probably become an indispensable part of our society.
Lotte, thank you very much for your inspiring post.
I like they way you ended your blog. A question gives us a good starting point for the discussion. I definitely share your opinion that self-driving taxi’s can be a great opportunity for Uber. However, with emphasis on ‘can’. I think it will take a lot of effort from people to learn to trust a self driving car. People entrust their lives to a machine, which might feel really strange for them. The confirmation that trust is a big issue, is for example showed by this article on The New Yorker: http://www.newyorker.com/tech/elements/learning-to-trust-a-self-driving-car
In the question you ask at the end of your post, you asked if it might be the starting signal for the disruption of the car industry. I disagree with that statement. It could be the start signal for the taxi industry, but in my opinion some other car companies are already started with developing and launching their elf driving cars. Tesla is the best example of it. Their ‘Autopilot’ is already in use. Although it’s not a complete self driving car yet, very much aspects of driving are already automated. So, if you say start signal for the car industry, I’d say no.
I am curious what you guys think about the self driving cars for Uber. Might it for Uber be cheaper to focus more on electric cars instead of self driving cars? It takes a huge investment to purchase al those self driving cars.
Hi Lotte!
Thank you for your post. I think it’s also interesting to look at this innovation’s impact on the environment. If there is a prediction that there will be 75% less cars by 2050, this could play out in two scenarios. Firstly, there could be an immense reduction in the amount of CO2 emissions. Yet, on the other hand, the Conservation Magazine makes a very good point that the opposite might occur – If driving becomes more convenient by the push of a button, our reliance on them increases which would ‘negate their environmental benefits,’ potentially even increasing CO2 emissions. I guess only time will tell which scenario will occur in the future!
– http://conservationmagazine.org/2016/03/will-self-driving-cars-reduce-or-increase-emissions/