'Entirely Different': The Next Few Years Of Vehicle Autonomy Will Change Everything

"If you've noticed that the EV hype cycle hasn't exactly been front-and-center lately, you're not alone. Brands have dialed their plans down a notch as the EV tax credit fades out and investments in battery plants look less fruitful than originally expected. Instead, they're dusting off an old playbook. Once again, automakers are expecting big strides in autonomous capability by the end of the decade. But will they deliver?"

"After years of false starts and face plants, the mobility industry is gung-ho on self-driving cars again. Some automakers, like Tesla, never gave up on the dream. Others took a step back in the last few years, as driverless technology started looking too costly and time consuming. Ford and VW shut down Argo AI, and General Motors folded up Cruise. Now vehicle autonomy is front and center once moreand moving faster than ever."

"Waymo started testing its autonomous vehicles (with a safety monitor) in Philadelphia and will start manual driving to collect data in Baltimore, St. Louis, and Pittsburgh; Uber and Avride launched a robotaxi service in Dallas that will initially include a human safety operator behind the wheel; and the California Department of Motor Vehicles released revised rules that would allow companies to test and eventually deploy self-driving trucks on public highways in the state."

Electric vehicle momentum has softened as the EV tax credit phases out and some battery plant investments underperform. Automakers are deprioritizing aggressive EV rollouts and redirecting resources toward autonomous driving capabilities expected to advance significantly by decade's end. Recent activity includes Waymo testing with safety monitors in Philadelphia and collecting manual driving data in other cities, Uber and Avride launching a robotaxi pilot in Dallas with human safety operators, and California updating DMV rules to permit testing and eventual deployment of self-driving trucks on public highways. Carmakers are accelerating autonomy roadmaps, with companies like Rivian presenting autonomy and AI strategies. Fuel economy rollbacks may not yield overall consumer savings, and Volvo remains committed to U.S. electrification opportunities.

Read at insideevs.com