Lyft and GM; Google and Ford; What's Next?

[craigh]

I still believe that people love to drive cars. I'll hold onto that hope forever.

 

[Cullen C]

Really enjoying reading the thread, great perspectives. I agree with Joe that what once seemed so far away is barreling down the track. Autonomous cars and transportation networks will(have) become the new arms race for the industry.

Read this yesterday and thought it was worth sharing:

http://www.wired.com/2016/01/the-metastructure-transportation?mbid=social_twitter


Goes perfectly with the video Alex shared.

 

[joe.pistell]

I still believe that people love to drive cars. I'll hold onto that hope forever.

"I still believe that people love to ride horses. I'll hold onto that hope forever."

Craig, that was just for fun. Following your thought, wait until the highly cautious till self driving cars get in our way and drive us all nuts! It'll be like following grandma, but, 100's of them everywhere you look! It'll create a social divide among us all. I can hear Alex saying: "I ain't no commie robot rider, grow some balls and DIY".

 

[craigh]

"I still believe that people love to ride horses. I'll hold onto that hope forever."

Craig, that was just for fun. Following your thought, wait until the highly cautious till self driving cars get in our way and drive us all nuts! It'll be like following grandma, but, 100's of them everywhere you look! It'll create a social divide among us all. I can hear Alex saying: "I ain't no commie robot rider, grow some balls and DIY".

I'm from Aylmer, Ontario - people here still love to ride horses

There will be lanes for automated cars and lanes for me and my 3 friends who still want to drive on our own.

Then again, once I can jailbreak my automated car we'll see how I feel.

 

[Chris Cachor]

We believe the future is in driverless cars and Lyft and Uber are in prime positions to help facilitate a model where regular consumers no longer "own" cars.

Wouldn't Apple/Google leapfrog Uber/Lyft? AFAIK Uber and Lyft don't own the maps/models. They're basically a market matcher, right?

I remain skeptical that self-driving cars will "take over". I can see the application very useful in dense urban areas where car ownership/use is very low. But I don't see self driving cars towing trailers in inclement weather. I definitely see cars going electric and software becoming much more important - but I think for the most part most people will still purchase vehicles. Taxi drivers I think should probably be the most worried bunch.

 

[Alex Snyder]

But I don't see self driving cars towing trailers in inclement weather. I definitely see cars going electric and software becoming much more important - but I think for the most part most people will still purchase vehicles. Taxi drivers I think should probably be the most worried bunch.

Actually, I bet the first areas we see vehicle automation will be in delivery services. 18 wheelers typically stick to major roads and drive at slower speeds. On top of that businesses would love to cut their delivery costs by removing a salary, so there is financial incentive to tackle a potentially "easier" path first.

And Chris, being in Chicago, you should know that inclement weather driving mistakes are typically human error

 

[jon.berna]

Actually, I bet the first areas we see vehicle automation will be in delivery services. 18 wheelers typically stick to major roads and drive at slower speeds. On top of that businesses would love to cut their delivery costs by removing a salary, so there is financial incentive to tackle a potentially "easier" path first.

And Chris, being in Chicago, you should know that inclement weather driving mistakes are typically human error

This makes the most sense as the commercial to consumer path of innovation seems logical. This would include buses and taxis in major cities. I for one think most consumers would agree having the option of autonomous driving would be more than welcome.

 

[joe.pistell]

Wouldn't Apple/Google leapfrog Uber/Lyft? AFAIK Uber and Lyft don't own the maps/models. They're basically a market matcher, right?

Chris, I agree. Uber is a market maker. Not only have they made the UI that creates consumption, they create markets one city at a time. In this regard, Uber is doing all the heavy lifting (like Tesla is in creating a totally new market). I also agree that Uber is vulnerable to Google/Apple. The Google/Ford alliance should worry Uber investors (& car dealers).

 

[joe.pistell]

...But I don't see self driving cars towing trailers in inclement weather...

A reporter test drives Freightliner's new self-driving truck...
"We were dealing with pretty significant cross-winds during my drive...The system reacts to wind gusts far quicker than a human driver can, and responds with fluid movements far removed from the half-panicked jerk of the steering wheel most drivers would instinctively make."

[video] http://forum.dealerrefresh.com/threads/apple-selling-cars-direct-to-consumers.4320/page-2#post-39864

Chris, if you think about it, cross winds are easier to master than urban chaos. It won't be long before it becomes common knowledge that humans reactions will be inferior to robots.


p.s. I'm waiting for the day when robots go racing, then they'll be pitted against a NASACR driver

 

[craigh]

A reporter test drives Freightliner's new self-driving truck...
"We were dealing with pretty significant cross-winds during my drive...The system reacts to wind gusts far quicker than a human driver can, and responds with fluid movements far removed from the half-panicked jerk of the steering wheel most drivers would instinctively make."

As much as I do believe in the technology, let's not pretend that's not native advertising.