DriverlessRatings Weekly News Recap - February 15th - 22nd

Americans Not Very Trusting of Self-Driving Cars

In a wide-ranging survey, a German company released it's findings when it comes to self-driving vehicles. There are a lot of interesting findings but one that stands out is that only 34% of Americans think self-driving cars will increase safety. This is just one small study, but interesting nonetheless. Here are a few key statistics:

Read more here: https://qz.com/1211522/china-is-poised-to-be-the-leader-in-self-driving-cars/

Google Receives Regulatory Approval to Operate Driverless Taxis

Waymo got a permit in late January from the Arizona Department of Transportation to operate as a Transportation Network Company, according to Ryan Harding, a spokesman at the state agency. No further details have been announced yet but we are getting close to a Waymo roll-out in Arizona. 

Read more here: https://www.aol.com/article/finance/2018/02/19/driverless-taxi-rides-are-headed-your-way-this-year/23365833/

Race to Maps for Driverless Cars

Bloomberg put out a fascinating piece in regards to the race companies are in to build a superior mapping system. The article lays out the two most common approaches: 

"One aims to create complete high-definition maps that will let the driverless cars of the future navigate all on their own; another creates maps piece-by-piece, using sensors in today’s vehicles that will allow cars to gradually automate more and more parts of driving."

Read more here: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2018-02-21/nobody-wants-to-let-google-win-the-war-for-maps-all-over-again

Image credit: Waymo