Waymo CEO John Krafcik stated the self-driving vehicle company is now providing limited “rider-only” trips in Phoenix, Arizona, and is looking beyond the robo-taxi business to bring future revenue, including delivery services.
Waymo, a unit of Alphabet Inc, has started offering completely automated rides, without attendants in the automobile, to a few hundred early users of its robo-taxi service in Phoenix, Krafcik verified on Sunday at a dinner with journalists ahead of a conference in Detroit.
He did not state when or how sooner Waymo would expand “rider-only” services. Riders signed up for the wholly automated service have signed non-disclosure agreements, he stated.
Waymo hasn’t revealed how many completely automated rides it has given, but has indicated it is still a small amount.
Krafcik stated Waymo still look for new ways to sell its technology beyond robo-taxi services.
The company is testing its so-called automated driver on Peterbilt trucks and prepares to broaden trucking and commercial delivery applications of its technology as part of a project referred internally as “Husky,” Krafcik said. Waymo has stated it is testing its system on trucks in Michigan, Arizona and Georgia.
“We think trucking is a really interesting application of the Waymo driver,” Krafcik stated. He added that present regulations do not permit driverless operation of heavier trucks, however.
“If you need a driver’s license, it’s not self driving,” Krafcik stated.
