Home Transports Waymo Plans More Self Driving Cars on the Road

Waymo Plans More Self Driving Cars on the Road

Waymo is planning to launch another technical service center that will be located in the Phoenix area, an expansion that is expected to assist the startup in doubling its capacity in the region as it gears up to increase its commercial fleet.

The new center will be situated in Mesa and is anticipated to start its operations in the second half of 2019.

Waymo’s current 60,000 sq.ft. facility based in Chandler, Arizona will remain operational.

The ex-Google autonomous driving startup, which spun out to become a subsidiary of Alphabet, launched its first physical location in Chandler, Arizona back in 2016.

Since 2016, the company has boosted its testing endeavors, rolled out an early rider program and gradually made a step towards commercial deployment.

READ MORE: Waymo Rolls Out its First Autonomous Driving Car Service

READ MORE: Waymo’s Driverless Cars are not Driverless Yet

Unveiled in April 2017, the early rider program had over 400 participants when the company last shared its figures on the particular program.

Back in December, the company rolled out Waymo One, a commercial autonomous car service as well as accompanying application.

The company still does not have self-driving cars on Phoenix public roads.

The last announcement from Waymo shows that it is still devoted to its first plan to ultimately cover a considerable portion of the expansive Phoenix metropolis, which is nearly 600 square miles.

Currently, Waymo operates in several locations including Mesa, Gilbert, Tempe, and Chandler.

What this means is that there’s a likelihood that local residents will see more Waymo autonomous driving cars on public roads – an experience that has not been received well by some parties.

Waymo is a Mountain View, California-based company that is focused on developing autonomous driving technology.

READ MORE: World’s Top 33 Companies Working on Self Driving Cars

The current Alphabet subsidiary started out as a Google project before transforming into an independent company in December 2016.

Waymo began testing its autonomous driving taxi service in Phoenix, Arizona in April 2017.

Later on December 5, 2018, the particular service rolled out its first-ever commercial autonomous driving vehicle dubbed Waymo One.

Users located in the metropolitan area of Phoenix can utilize an application to request for the self-driving car service.

Waymo has put its technology through the toughest and longest ongoing test drive in the world.

In fact, the company has driven its cars over 7 billion miles in simulation but also 10 million miles on public roads, giving the company vast human experience in driving that is useful for each of the company’s vehicles.

Waymo has tested its autonomous driving cars across several locations located in the United States.

According to the company, driving each day in different real-world conditions helps in teaching the cars how to navigate through an array of situations.

Before Waymo’s cars drive in any area, the company’s team of experts creates its own comprehensive three-dimensional maps, which help in highlighting several details such as stop signs, traffic lights, crosswalks, lane larkers, sidewalks and cubs, and road profiles among other numerous road aspects.

Furthermore, the company’s software and sensors are designed to regularly scan for objects surrounding the vehicle including obstructions, road work, vehicles, cyclists, and pedestrians.

Subscribe to our newsletter

Signup today for free and be the first to get notified on the latest news and insights on artificial intelligence

KC Cheung
KC Cheung has over 18 years experience in the technology industry including media, payments, and software and has a keen interest in artificial intelligence, machine learning, deep learning, neural networks and its applications in business. Over the years he has worked with some of the leading technology companies, building and growing dynamic teams in a fast moving international environment.
- Advertisment -

MOST POPULAR

AI Model Development isn’t the End; it’s the Beginning

AI model development isn’t the end; it’s the beginning. Like children, successful models need continuous nurturing and monitoring throughout their lifecycle. Parenting is exhilarating and, if...