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Can Detroit Beat Google to the Self-Driving Car?

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Re: Can Detroit Beat Google to the Self-Driving Car?

#31

Post by mc32 »

akgerber wrote: post #22
zellyn wrote: post #3

I don't understand why everyone keeps pretending there's a smooth continuum: "He says they contain GM’s road map to autonomy, starting with “Driver in charge” in 2010, progressing to “Driver mostly in charge” this year, to “Car mostly in charge” in 2020, and finally “Car in charge” in 2025." That just doesn't make sense. To my mind, there's "cruise control" as it exists today, and "car drives itself completely and sa…

Detroit is a little more willing to build killing people into its business model. Hence the 30,000+ death toll on the roads for the past century, their big push in the 1990s to replace lightweight cars with big heavy SUVs, and their present push to build big automated distraction screens into the middle of cars.

Are you saying the US car industry is more willing than European, Japanese, Chinese and Indian auto manufacturers in producing cars which are marginally more dangerous, on the whole?

I think you are overstating your case. They all provide as much as their market demand. So, in some markets you see fewer safety features (see south African auto market)

Re: Can Detroit Beat Google to the Self-Driving Car?

#32

Post by lukeschlather »

kmkemp wrote: post #24
maxerickson wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They could license the tech. Car manufacturing isn't really an exciting business to be in.

I fear the day that google has broken the political barriers and car manufacturers release different software that turns into headlines of automated car crashes. I sincerely hope that google's software is licensed at a reasonable rate such that every car manufacturer will use it.

I've never trusted Google's technology with my life. (Never had occasion to.) I've trusted every car manufacturer's technology with my life at one point or another. I'm not betting on Google having a better safety record. They can learn, but dealing with physically dangerous situations is a new area for them.

Re: Can Detroit Beat Google to the Self-Driving Car?

#33

Post by hristov »

zellyn wrote: post #3

I don't understand why everyone keeps pretending there's a smooth continuum: "He says they contain GM’s road map to autonomy, starting with “Driver in charge” in 2010, progressing to “Driver mostly in charge” this year, to “Car mostly in charge” in 2020, and finally “Car in charge” in 2025." That just doesn't make sense. To my mind, there's "cruise control" as it exists today, and "car drives itself completely and sa…

I have tried the Tesla autopilot and completely agree with you. The tesla cruise control is very good at controlling the speed and the brakes, but once you give it control of the wheel it gets very dangerous.

The car is prone to making a sharp turn towards the curb and then beeping and handing control back over to you.

Re: Can Detroit Beat Google to the Self-Driving Car?

#34

Post by maxerickson »

kmkemp wrote: post #24
maxerickson wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They could license the tech. Car manufacturing isn't really an exciting business to be in.

I fear the day that google has broken the political barriers and car manufacturers release different software that turns into headlines of automated car crashes. I sincerely hope that google's software is licensed at a reasonable rate such that every car manufacturer will use it.

I think politically that the driver assist systems that are in millions of cars already are at least as big a contribution as the research projects.

Re: Can Detroit Beat Google to the Self-Driving Car?

#35

Post by mc32 »

zellyn wrote: post #4
zellyn wrote: post #3

I don't understand why everyone keeps pretending there's a smooth continuum: "He says they contain GM’s road map to autonomy, starting with “Driver in charge” in 2010, progressing to “Driver mostly in charge” this year, to “Car mostly in charge” in 2020, and finally “Car in charge” in 2025." That just doesn't make sense. To my mind, there's "cruise control" as it exists today, and "car drives itself completely and sa…

Honestly, I think it's because the auto makers are completely out of their depth when it comes to machine learning, and are either pretending they're not while they get their act together, or pretending they're not while the ship slowly sinks…

Why wouldn't a GM, VW, Toyota work as they always have and work with partners with experience in that space? Google gets the eyeballs because it's the darling, but there are lots of companies working on lots of advanced and dull things under the radar. There is no reason why these behemoth multinationals can't use third party tech just as google, apple and amazon do for many of their products.

It's not as if all these new entrants are taking Ford's erstwhile philosophy of building everything inhouse. Rather tbey cobble lots of things from different sources together.

Re: Can Detroit Beat Google to the Self-Driving Car?

#36

Post by kazinator »

untothebreach wrote: post #2

Sorry for the off-topic-ness, but it really irks me when the US auto industry is referred to as "Detroit." I grew up in Flint, MI and currently live just outside of Detroit, and the implication that the US auto industry is here is, frankly, rather offensive. Sure, there are a couple plants here and there, and corporate HQs, of course, but after what the US auto industry did to the blue collar workers in Flint and Det…

It's a synecdoche (and a deeply entrenched one: Detroit is a long-standing symbol denoting the auto industry.)

Do you object to a farm helper being called a "hand", because he's an entire man?

People understand that "hand" denotes the person, just like they understand that Detroit, in context, isn't literally the city of Detroit.

If the President is visiting Los Angeles, and is informed of something, then "Washington is informed".

Likewise, financial business is not only on Wall Street.

Broadway musicals aren't played only on Broadway --- even if we restrict the context to New York.

Re: Can Detroit Beat Google to the Self-Driving Car?

#37

Post by phkahler »

dssddsds wrote: post #19
lallysingh wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Alphabet's market cap is 490B, Fiat Chrysler is 19B. Toyota is (afaict) 150B. GM is roughly 50B. I don't think Google's gotta worry about building cars. They can just buy someone who does.

Ugh Google just buy Tesla already /s

They said somebody who can build cars. I assume that means on a large scale. Much as I like Tesla, they are not currently up to the task and their market cap makes then undesirable for anyone looking to buy a company that can make cars.

Re: Can Detroit Beat Google to the Self-Driving Car?

#38

Post by kazinator »

akgerber wrote: post #22
zellyn wrote: post #3

I don't understand why everyone keeps pretending there's a smooth continuum: "He says they contain GM’s road map to autonomy, starting with “Driver in charge” in 2010, progressing to “Driver mostly in charge” this year, to “Car mostly in charge” in 2020, and finally “Car in charge” in 2025." That just doesn't make sense. To my mind, there's "cruise control" as it exists today, and "car drives itself completely and sa…

Detroit is a little more willing to build killing people into its business model. Hence the 30,000+ death toll on the roads for the past century, their big push in the 1990s to replace lightweight cars with big heavy SUVs, and their present push to build big automated distraction screens into the middle of cars.

SUVs probably do a better job of protecting the driver and passengers in a collision, and are no more efficient at killing non-motorists than "light weight". You can easily be mowed down by a Smart Fortwo.

Re: Can Detroit Beat Google to the Self-Driving Car?

#39

Post by pinkrooftop »

SimonPStevens wrote: post #30

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Re: Can Detroit Beat Google to the Self-Driving Car?

#40

Post by SimonPStevens »

pinkrooftop wrote: post #39
SimonPStevens wrote: post #30

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