Sometimes the Future is not evenly distributed geographically. Self-driving cars have been part of the Future Future for quite some time. That Future is finally here, but it’s only available in certain locations.
Waymo, part of Future distributor Alphabet, Inc., is a self-driving taxi service, currently available in parts of San Francisco, Los Angeles, Phoenix and Austin. If you’re in or near one of those cities, it’s well worth booking a ride into the Future.
I (Alan) was in Los Angeles showing off the Art Authority Museum at the annual American Alliance of Museums trade show there. Although I could have walked the 1.5 miles from the show to the Broad Museum, the Future was definitely beckoning.
You book Waymo through an app (of course). The app seemed well thought out and directed me right to where the car was waiting. The app was supposed to let me unlock the car, but it didn’t. It did let me text with Waymo tech support. While doing that the car started to drive off, and I was ready to be disappointed. But it only went a hundred feet and then stopped by the curb. At that point a big “Unlock” button appeared in the app and things continued smoothly from there.
Quite smoothly, actually. The car’s driving felt, if anything, a little overly cautious. But that’s definitely a good thing. Waymo’s stated mission is “to be the world’s most trusted driver. Making it safer, more accessible, and more sustainable to get around”. They cite statistics such as 1.2 million worldwide vehicle-crash deaths per year, and claim they are 80% better when it comes to safety.
Waymo cars are currently customized Jaguar EVs, with cool touch-screen displays that even let you see how the car perceives the world around it.
Waymo cars already present a number of customization options for the passenger, such as your own playlist of music.
Waymo is nowhere near Open Car yet, but it is certainly a major step into the Future. Coming soon to a location near you.