Singapore launches self-driving taxi

The self-driving car software company nuTonomy has launched the first-ever public trial of a "robo-taxi service" (see video link below).



The trial, which will continue on an on-going basis, is being held within Singapore's one-north business district, where nuTonomy has been conducting daily autonomous vehicle testing since April.

Select Singapore residents are being invited to use nuTonomy's ride-hailing smartphone app to book a no-cost ride in a nuTonomy self-driving car that employs the company's software, which it says has been integrated with high-performance sensing and computing components.

The rides will be provided in a Renault Zoe or Mitsubishi i-MiEV electric vehicle that nuTonomy has specially configured for autonomous driving.  An engineer from nuTonomy will ride in the vehicle to observe system performance and assume control if needed to ensure passenger comfort and safety.

Throughout the trial, nuTonomy will collect and evaluate valuable data related to software system performance, vehicle routing efficiency, the vehicle booking process, and the overall passenger experience. This data will enable nuTonomy to refine its software in preparation for the launch of a widely-available commercial robo-taxi service in Singapore in 2018.

CEO and co-founder of nuTonomy, Karl Iagnemma, said, 'nuTonomy's first-in-the-world public trial is a direct reflection of the level of maturity that we have achieved with our AV software system. The trial represents an extraordinary opportunity to collect feedback from riders in a real-world setting, and this feedback will give nuTonomy a unique advantage as we work toward deployment of a self-driving vehicle fleet in 2018.'

You can watch their video of this here. (Picture from the video).