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Ford invests $1B in Argo AI


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You may feel differently when you’re 80. One of the hardest thing I ever had to do was to pull the keys from my 85 year old father and to tell hm he could no longer drive. You have no idea on what losing that freedom can mean to someone. Someday, I can see that owning an autonomous vehicle will be something many folks will appreciate, as they age.

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It's "Evolution" via vertical thinking

 

1. People love driving

2. People love being chauffeured so they can play on their phones

3. People love Uber and Lyft because it's cheaper than being chauffered or taxis.

4. People love autonomous vehicles because there's no driver needed.

 

I wonder though if there's a fallacy in that logic and the whole thing is being driven

by electronics and communication technology companies with a vested interest

in keeping customers engaged on their devices instead of being preoccupied

long commutes....

 

or is it companies wanting to do away with traditional taxi cab models and go to driverless services

that do away with human drivers, fatigue management and chances of violence and robberies?

 

I find it hard to believe that is all being driven by people wanting to play on their phones instead of driving,

are we that drawn in by being connected to social media that we need to change our vehicles.

 

I can understand some form of transport for aged drivers that are beyond driving themselves but that

has to be a small market, are we looking at getting kids home safe at night, legally avoid drink driving

and other awkward social situations?

 

and if driver controls are not needed, can the shape of those vehicles be changed?

 

1957_bmw_isetta_30_727.jpg

Edited by jpd80
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JPD80....I believe you have captured the biggest motivator....and the whole thing is being driven

by electronics and communication technology companies with a vested interest.

As I've said before, in due time-but does the accelerated rate make sense? And as for the point about enabling someone at age 85 who might not be trusted to drive a car, good point, but from my perspective, hardly a reason for this accelerated effort. Lane control? collision avoidance? All good measures that can make a difference. Let's digest those improvements and learn from them before we start throwing steering wheels away.

Wonder what Mullaly would be doing on this subject? Shelling out a billion??

Oh and Fields should worry more about improving exisitng products so that NONE make anyones "worst vehicle" list.

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Another potential factor is perhaps the consideration of the development of 'megacities' that is occurring around the world. In some of those cities (maybe most) there could potentially be a groundswell to ban the auto from the city core. Offering autonomous vehicles is an approach to addressing the needs that these megacities will create, and thus maintain the future viability of the auto in that context. Autonomous autos and their ability to chain also offer an alternative to transit, not just taxis, and that can create more demand in the future too.

 

I think the 'rush' we are seeing right now is about marketing and perception - it's important for any current legacy' manufacturer to not be left at the gate when this technology launches. I think the legacy companies expect there will be perceived 'winners and losers' and thus the need to propel themselves into the winner camp. There is too much existential risk to do nothing in this realm.

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Another thing to consider is that the government/insurance companies might regulate non-self driving cars out of existence also. I see a huge backlash to that though

 

There is a market for this, but it should be more long term then happening in the next 5-10 years.

 

I see assisted self driving cars being more popular then completely self-driven cars...though that brings up some interesting quandaries such as someone using their car to drive them home when they are drunk. From what I understand, if your in your car with your keys sleeping it off, you can still get nailed with DUI, but if you leave your keys outside of the car, they can't charge you.

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I too think there's a big difference between a car that can be driven autonomously and one that can only be driven autonomously. I do wonder what happens to liability - car runs over a pedestrian etc... We were going after a project that would have had me driving three hours each way to a meeting once a week for two years... letting the car drive while I worked would have been awesome.

 

total2.jpg

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I too think there's a big difference between a car that can be driven autonomously and one that can only be driven autonomously. I do wonder what happens to liability - car runs over a pedestrian etc... We were going after a project that would have had me driving three hours each way to a meeting once a week for two years... letting the car drive while I worked would have been awesome.

 

total2.jpg

This is why I'm so excited for AI driving. I drive about 600-800 'miles on average a week to projects and meetings. Would be nice to work while driving.

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You may feel differently when youre 80. One of the hardest thing I ever had to do was to pull the keys from my 85 year old father and to tell hm he could no longer drive. You have no idea on what losing that freedom can mean to someone. Someday, I can see that owning an autonomous vehicle will be something many folks will appreciate, as they age.

I can see the value in that for the elderly, so long as they continue to build cars and trucks that are built for those that want and like to drive. It would also be nice for long trips as well.

Edited by tbone
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i still say this is a waste of money. :nonono::headscratch:

 

That was the general response when Henry Ford started marketing Model T to the masses in the early 20th century, too. Ford succeeded nonetheless. With proper marketing and organization, the modern day Ford will likewise succeed with autonomous cars in the early 21st century.

 

There is great demand for autonomous vehicle technology right now. That's why Ford is investing in Argo AI.

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There is great demand for autonomous vehicle technology right now. That's why Ford is investing in Argo AI.

 

Where is this demand for autonomous vehicles? Here is one study:

 

http://www.bcg.com/expertise/industries/automotive/autonomous-vehicle-adoption-study.aspx

 

Just as a frame of reference, there was 82 million cars sold in 2015 (first I could find in a quick google search) so basically they are looking at chasing roughly 15% of the marketplace with fully autonomous vehicles. I have no issue with a partially autonomous vehicle (ie regular car that can drive itself as needed)

 

 

Some more info...sounds like its more about a cash grab by force feeding a marketplace with something it really doesn't want or need

 

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-02-13/one-reason-staffers-quit-google-s-car-project-the-company-paid-them-so-much

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