In November 2024, Tier IV will launch their robotaxi service in Tokyo. Targeting areas and times underserved by traditional taxicabs, the service will start with proof-of-concept tests in Odaiba, a district in Tokyo Bay. Tier IV aims to gradually expand the service to cover Tokyo’s
Cruise will restart supervised autonomous driving in Phoenix, Arizona. Over recent weeks, the GM affiliate has been mapping and collecting road data. Now, the company will validate their AVs’ performance against strict safety and operational standards. During this phase, safety drivers will be present in the vehicles to monitor and intervene as needed.
Renault Group unveiled their autonomous driving strategy, highlighting a collaboration with Chinese AD developer WeRide. The two companies have launched an autonomous shuttle service during the French Open (26 May to 9 June), providing transport between the event venues and parking areas.
WeRidereceived remote driverless testing and cargo testing licenses from Guangzhou’s municipal authorities. The permits mean WeRide’s Robovan autonomous cargo vehicle can conduct fully driverless testing and cargo testing in Guangzhou city. The testing area covers six administrative districts, encompassing a total of 797 test roads and 3,247 kilometers of two-way distance. This is the first license in China for L4 driverless cargo vehicle remote testing in an urban open-road scenario, and the first to support 24/7 autonomous cargo vehicle testing.
Volvo Autonomous Solutions introduced their new VNL Autonomous truck at the ACT Expo in Las Vegas. It is built with advanced autonomous driving technology from Aurora Innovation. The truck incorporates Aurora Driver, an L4 AD system with AI software, dual computers, lidar, cameras, radar, and sensors. The VNL Autonomous is designed to offer a fully-integrated autonomous solution for the hub-to-hub segment.
Inceptio Technology, a developer in autonomous driving technologies for heavy-duty trucks, has loged over 100 million kilometers in safe commercial operations with their advanced trucks. This accomplishment highlights Inceptio’s role in advancing the commercial use of autonomous heavy-duty trucks globally, using their Truck Navigate-on-Autopilot (T-NOA) system. Logistics firms in China use these autonomous trucks, including ZTO Express and JD Logistics.
Xpeng says they have achieved full map-free operation for their XNGP urban intelligent driving system, significantly increasing its coverage. The usable distance has more than doubled in in Shanghai; Guangzhou, and Shenzhen, and grown by 31 per cent in Foshan cities. These cities now support map-free intelligent driving capabilities. In addition, Xpeng has added over 30,000 kilometers of XNGP urban intelligent driving coverage in Shandong Province, and more than 11,000 in Jiangxi Province.
The XNGP system can handle complex and cross-scenario routes in major cities, especially on key roads used frequently by local Xpeng owners. In smaller cities and counties, the maker focuses on opening core routes common for users to ensure a relatively continuous and complete driving experience. There are also specialized functions for lower-tier roads. The XNGP system uses navigation maps, ‘XNet perception’, and driving strategies to achieve performance in map-free areas comparable to that of HD-mapped areas. At their recent intelligent driving spring launch event, Xpeng set new targets to achieve full coverage of XNGP functions in major urban road networks across China by the end of 2024, and to start development of highway NGP in 2025. The carmaker will also begin developing XNGP functionalities for global markets in 2025.
KargoBot, the autonomous truck solution developer backed by DiDi, received a permit for L4 autonomous truck platooning tests on public roads in Beijing. KargoBot currently operates in North and Northwest China, conducting routine tests and operations, offering end-to-end intelligent transportation for short-, medium-, and long-distance routes. As of this May, KargoBot’s L4 trucks have transported over 32 million tonne-kilometers of bulk goods, with total demonstration operation distance exceeding 6 million kilometers.
Pony.ai has obtained Guangzhou city’s first intelligent connected vehicle (ICV) expressway test permit, with one robotaxi and one autonomous truck model selected for testing. As of this May, Pony had accumulated over 33 million kilometers of autonomous driving tests, with more than 3 million kilometers in fully driverless testing. In autonomous trucking specifically, at the end of this past March they had logged nearly 5 million kilometers of testing distance, over 1.5 million of which in commercial logistics operations
Hyundai Motor and autonomous driving software provider Plus unveiled the first L4 autonomous Class-8 hydrogen fuel cell electric truck in the U.S. at the Advanced Clean Transportation Expo. The Xcient truck is undergoing initial autonomous driving assessments, making it the first-ever L4 self-driving test on a class-8 fuel cell electric truck ever in the country. The collaboration seeks to show that autonomous hydrogen fuel cell trucks can help make trucking safer, more efficient, and more sustainable. Plus’ SuperDrive solution, being deployed in the U.S., Europe, and Australia, uses sensors including lidar, radar, and cameras to provide surround perception, planning, prediction, and self-driving capabilities.
Baidu Apollo has introduced the Apollo ADFM (L4 autonomous driving foundation model). They also launched their sixth-generation unmanned Apollo Go robotaxi, priced at around C¥ 200,000 (USD $27,700) and equipped with Baidu’s latest intelligent system. Leveraging this model, Baidu’s Apollo Go Robotaxi service has successfully navigated Wuhan’s road conditions, providing nearly half of the city’s residents with convenient autonomous mobility service. By April, Baidu Apollo had accumulated over 100 million kilometers of autonomous driving distance without major accidents.
NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation has reported 22 incidents involving Waymo vehicles equipped with the 5th-generation ADS. Along with collisions with stationary objects, parked vehicles, and potential violations of traffic laws, some incidents involved the ADS-equipped vehicles driving on the wrong side of the road with nearby oncoming traffic, or entering construction zones.NHTSA now is investigating these occurrences to determine the performance and safety of Waymo’s ADS.
The Office of Defects Investigation is also examining incidents involving Zoox vehicles which unexpectedly braked suddenly, resulting in rear-end collisions. The investigations focus on the Zoox ADS in Toyota Highlander vehicles. These events, have raised concerns over the system’s performance in real-world driving conditions. The incidents took place in clear daytime conditions. Both collisions involved motorcyclists who were unable to avoid the abruptly stopping vehicles, leading to minor injuries.
And that same Office of Defects Investigation is assessing incidents involving Ford Mustang Mach-Es equipped with the BlueCruise system. This inquiry follows reports of two severe collisions with stationary vehicles during nighttime on controlled-access highways, each leading to fatalities. There are
