![\"\"](\"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2018\/11\/waymo-360-degree-ed.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nImage source: Engadget [1]<\/p>\n
Despite all the simulated and real-world testing, their algorithm is not perfect and is subject to external factors like other drivers on the road. Waymo\u2019s cars have been involved in multiple crashes but it appears that most of them were caused by human violations [2]. However, this is proving to be an issue for the company in the short term as it is preparing to launch a fleet of autonomous taxis in Arizona. Although accidents involving autonomous vehicles (AV) are far fewer than those caused by humans [3], there\u2019s growing discomfort about the safety of these vehicles. To this end, the company has started an \u201cEarly Rider\u201d program [4] which allows interested riders to use the service (for free). In order to improve rider safety, every car will have a safety driver at all times. In addition to introducing a new product to customers, Waymo can also gather data about customers\u2019 perceptions of and reactions to the product and this is more data for their algorithm to learn and improve the ride experience. I think investing upfront in educating customers about the benefits of AVs will help build a loyal customer base and considering that this is still a novel product, customer interest is still high and a directed marketing campaign can help build brand loyalty.<\/p>\n
Waymo believes that AVs will make transportation inherently safer by removing the common mistakes that humans make on the road [5]. However, to be completely safe, there needs to be a critical mass of AVs on the road, but this is a long-term continuous issue for the company (and industry) as legislation supporting AVs is almost nonexistent. Waymo, through its parent company, Alphabet is investing in legislative efforts [6] to educate policymakers about AVs and associated benefits in order to direct regulations and infrastructure investments to support the industry. In order to truly be a partner to the public transportation systems, Waymo is also attempting to factor existing infrastructure into its models to best serve customers [7], which will help the organization build a symbiotic long-term relationship with multiple stakeholders and improve its public perception. While this is a continuous process for the company, I think Waymo can demonstrate its commitment to its mission of improving transportation by assisting cities in emerging economies, where it wants to expand, build integrated transportation systems.<\/p>\n
I have little doubt in my mind that AVs will be a staple of our transportation systems in the future. However, the transition from existing systems will differ drastically across the world and the implications will be widespread, and I think the manufacturers will have to play an active role beyond just product development. While I believe there are definite tangible benefits of an AV versus a regular vehicle, there are several questions to which I lack answers. For example, if an AV is involved in an accident, should the manufacturer be liable? Are the net benefits of AVs sufficient to negate the effects of job losses in the transportation industry? Given the requirements of AVs to be safe and successful, will everyone be limited to only AVs in the future and how will the regulations impact competition in the industry?<\/p>\n
(725 words)<\/p>\n
Endnotes:<\/p>\n
- \n
- Andrew J Hawkins, \u201cInside Waymo\u2019s Strategy to Grow the Best Brains for Self-Driving Cars\u201d, theverge.com, May 9, 2018, https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/2018\/5\/9\/17307156\/google-waymo-driverless-cars-deep-learning-neural-net-interview<\/a>, accessed November 2018<\/li>\n
- Alison Griswald, \u201cWaymo\u2019s self-driving car crashed because its human driver fell asleep at the wheel\u201d, qz.com, October 2, 2018, https:\/\/qz.com\/1410928\/waymos-self-driving-car-crashed-because-its-human-driver-fell-asleep\/<\/a>, accessed November 2018<\/li>\n
- Aarian Marshall and Alex Davies, \u201cWaymo\u2019s self-driving car crash in Arizona revives tough questions\u201d, wired.com, May 4, 2018, https:\/\/www.wired.com\/story\/waymo-crash-self-driving-google-arizona\/<\/a>, accessed November 2018<\/li>\n
- Waymo LLC, \u201cEarly Rider Program\u201d https:\/\/waymo.com\/apply\/faq\/<\/a>, accessed November 2018<\/li>\n
- Waymo LLC, \u201cTechnology\u201d, https:\/\/waymo.com\/tech\/<\/a>, accessed November 2018<\/li>\n
- Tony Romm, \u201cThe super-secret Google X lab has hired its own lobbyists in the nation\u2019s capital, recode.net, October 19, 2017, \u201dhttps:\/\/www.recode.net\/2017\/10\/19\/16506030\/google-x-money-alphabet-lobby-lobbying-congress<\/a>, accessed November 2018<\/li>\n
- Abner Li, \u201cWaymo\u00a0explores integrating self-driving cars w\/ public transportation for the \u2018last mile\u2019<\/a>, 9to5google.com, July 31, 2018, https:\/\/9to5google.com\/2018\/07\/31\/waymo-self-driving-public-transportion\/<\/a>, accessed November 2018<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
Image sources:<\/p>\n
- \n
- Richard Lawler, “Waymo’s 360-degree demo ride shows what self-driving cars ‘see'”, engadget.com, February 28, 2018, https:\/\/www.engadget.com\/2018\/02\/28\/waymo-360-degree-vr-self-driving-car-demo\/, accessed November 2018<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Waymo is attempting to improve transportation using autonomous vehicles. As it is preparing to launch a ride-hailing service with these cars, there are several challenges it faces – from perceived safety issues to long-term transportation policy around the world. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11740,"featured_media":31879,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","categories":[4450,1802,2461,2856],"class_list":["post-31877","hck-submission","type-hck-submission","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-autonomous-driving","category-autonomous-vehicles","category-machine-vision","category-self-driving-cars","hck-taxonomy-organization-waymo","hck-taxonomy-industry-technology","hck-taxonomy-country-united-states"],"connected_submission_link":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/assignment\/rc-tom-challenge-2018\/","yoast_head":"\n
Waymo: The future of (not) driving - Technology and Operations Management<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/waymo-the-future-of-not-driving\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Waymo: The future of (not) driving - Technology and Operations Management\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Waymo is attempting to improve transportation using autonomous vehicles. As it is preparing to launch a ride-hailing service with these cars, there are several challenges it faces - from perceived safety issues to long-term transportation policy around the world.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/waymo-the-future-of-not-driving\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Technology and Operations Management\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2018\/11\/waymo_fleet.jpeg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1600\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"923\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/d3.harvard.edu\\\/platform-rctom\\\/submission\\\/waymo-the-future-of-not-driving\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/d3.harvard.edu\\\/platform-rctom\\\/submission\\\/waymo-the-future-of-not-driving\\\/\",\"name\":\"Waymo: The future of (not) driving - Technology and Operations Management\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/d3.harvard.edu\\\/platform-rctom\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/d3.harvard.edu\\\/platform-rctom\\\/submission\\\/waymo-the-future-of-not-driving\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/d3.harvard.edu\\\/platform-rctom\\\/submission\\\/waymo-the-future-of-not-driving\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/d3.harvard.edu\\\/platform-rctom\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/4\\\/2018\\\/11\\\/waymo_fleet.jpeg\",\"datePublished\":\"2018-11-14T02:49:50+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/d3.harvard.edu\\\/platform-rctom\\\/submission\\\/waymo-the-future-of-not-driving\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/d3.harvard.edu\\\/platform-rctom\\\/submission\\\/waymo-the-future-of-not-driving\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/d3.harvard.edu\\\/platform-rctom\\\/submission\\\/waymo-the-future-of-not-driving\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/d3.harvard.edu\\\/platform-rctom\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/4\\\/2018\\\/11\\\/waymo_fleet.jpeg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/d3.harvard.edu\\\/platform-rctom\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/4\\\/2018\\\/11\\\/waymo_fleet.jpeg\",\"width\":1600,\"height\":923},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/d3.harvard.edu\\\/platform-rctom\\\/submission\\\/waymo-the-future-of-not-driving\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/d3.harvard.edu\\\/platform-rctom\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Submissions\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/d3.harvard.edu\\\/platform-rctom\\\/submission\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":3,\"name\":\"Waymo: The future of (not) driving\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/d3.harvard.edu\\\/platform-rctom\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/d3.harvard.edu\\\/platform-rctom\\\/\",\"name\":\"Technology and Operations Management\",\"description\":\"MBA Student Perspectives\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"性视界Action\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/d3.harvard.edu\\\/platform-rctom\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Waymo: The future of (not) driving - Technology and Operations Management","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/waymo-the-future-of-not-driving\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Waymo: The future of (not) driving - Technology and Operations Management","og_description":"Waymo is attempting to improve transportation using autonomous vehicles. As it is preparing to launch a ride-hailing service with these cars, there are several challenges it faces - from perceived safety issues to long-term transportation policy around the world.","og_url":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/waymo-the-future-of-not-driving\/","og_site_name":"Technology and Operations Management","og_image":[{"width":1600,"height":923,"url":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2018\/11\/waymo_fleet.jpeg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/waymo-the-future-of-not-driving\/","url":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/waymo-the-future-of-not-driving\/","name":"Waymo: The future of (not) driving - Technology and Operations Management","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/waymo-the-future-of-not-driving\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/waymo-the-future-of-not-driving\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2018\/11\/waymo_fleet.jpeg","datePublished":"2018-11-14T02:49:50+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/waymo-the-future-of-not-driving\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/waymo-the-future-of-not-driving\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/waymo-the-future-of-not-driving\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2018\/11\/waymo_fleet.jpeg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2018\/11\/waymo_fleet.jpeg","width":1600,"height":923},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/waymo-the-future-of-not-driving\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Submissions","item":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Waymo: The future of (not) driving"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/#website","url":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/","name":"Technology and Operations Management","description":"MBA Student Perspectives","potentialAction":[{"@type":"性视界Action","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/hck-submission\/31877","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/hck-submission"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/hck-submission"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11740"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=31877"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/hck-submission\/31877\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/31879"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=31877"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=31877"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
- Alison Griswald, \u201cWaymo\u2019s self-driving car crashed because its human driver fell asleep at the wheel\u201d, qz.com, October 2, 2018, https:\/\/qz.com\/1410928\/waymos-self-driving-car-crashed-because-its-human-driver-fell-asleep\/<\/a>, accessed November 2018<\/li>\n