Alphabet Driving Unit Waymo Brings Driverless Taxis to San Francisco in New Test

The first tests will be with Waymo employees, to gain feedback before expanding to more riders.

Advertisement
By Agence France-Presse | Updated: 18 February 2021 13:08 IST
Highlights
  • The move expands the testing for the autonomous vehicles
  • The first tests will be with Waymo employees
  • Waymo is among several automotive firms testing autonomous driving

Waymo said it has improved its lidar vision system, which uses lasers to detect surroundings as well

Waymo, the autonomous driving unit of Google parent Alphabet, said Wednesday it would begin testing its driverless ride-hailing service on the streets of San Francisco.

The move expands the testing for the autonomous vehicles, which have been in use in the Phoenix, Arizona area since 2017.

Advertisement

The first tests will be with Waymo employees, to gain feedback before expanding to more riders.

Waymo has improved its technology, which will be used for "tackling the city's iconic topographical variety - from rolling hills to sandy ocean highways, tiny side streets to huge freeways, bike lanes to tram tracks, and everything in between," a company blog post said.

Advertisement

The company said it has improved its lidar vision system - which uses lasers to detect surroundings - as well.

"Our highly sensitive cameras can spot traffic lights changing at a long distance... And our cameras and lidar can instantly spot a jaywalker sprinting across our path and act appropriately," the statement said.

Advertisement

Waymo is among several automotive and tech firms testing autonomous driving, although no large-scale deployments have begun.


Is Samsung Galaxy S21+ the perfect flagship for most Indians? We discussed this on Orbital, our weekly technology podcast, which you can subscribe to via Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, or RSS, download the episode, or just hit the play button below.

Affiliate links may be automatically generated - see our ethics statement for details.
 

Get your daily dose of tech news, reviews, and insights, in under 80 characters on Gadgets 360 Turbo. Connect with fellow tech lovers on our Forum. Follow us on X, Facebook, WhatsApp, Threads and Google News for instant updates. Catch all the action on our YouTube channel.

Further reading: Waymo, Alphabet
Advertisement

Related Stories

Popular Mobile Brands
  1. Amazon Prime Day Sale Dates Announced, Drops Prime Membership Price
  2. Carl Pei Tells Apple 'I'm Gonna Steal Your Customers' in Latest Video
  3. Honor 600 Smart 5G Listed on French Website, Could Launch Soon
  4. Call of Duty: Black Ops, Black Ops 2 Ports Coming to PlayStation Next Month
  5. Narwal S2, S20 Pro and S30 Vacuum Cleaners Debut in India: See Price
  6. Xiaomi Wants a Bigger Space in Your Home: Large Appliance Push Confirmed
  7. GTA 5 Owners to Get Free PS5, Xbox Series X/S Upgrades Ahead of New Heist
  1. Chandra Captures Sharpest-Ever X-Ray View of M87 Black Hole Jet
  2. Honor 600 Smart 5G With 7,700mAh Battery Listed on French Website, Could Launch Soon: Price, Features
  3. Rockstar Games Confirms GTA 6 Pre-Orders Will Begin June 25, Reveals New Cover Art
  4. Oppo Enco Air 5 India Launch Teased; Amazon Availability Confirmed
  5. Huawei FreeBuds 7i, FreeBuds SE 4 ANC Launched in India With Up to 50 Hours of Total Battery Life: Price, Features
  6. Aztec Hit With Second Security Breach, Days After Hackers Used Exploit to Steal $2.19 Million
  7. FilterCopy’s For The Real Me Season 1 Now on Instagram: Know Everything About This Micro-Drama Reel Series
  8. Narwal S20, S20 Pro, S30 Wet and Dry Vacuum Cleaners With Up to 20,000Pa Suction Launched in India:Price, Features
  9. Oppo Reno 16 Series Launch Date in Indonesia, Malaysia Announced as Pre-Orders Begin
  10. Vivo Y6e 5G Launched With 6,500mAh Battery, Snapdragon 4 Gen 2 SoC: Price, Specifications
Download Our Apps
Available in Hindi
© Copyright Red Pixels Ventures Limited 2026. All rights reserved.