The company wants to make the robotaxi available to customers through the Lyft app by 2023.  

Hyundai will assemble purpose-built vehicles by integrating Motional’s autonomous vehicle technology. The suite will include more than 30 sensors including radar, lidar, and cameras that see the interior and exterior. Its sensing system provides 360 degrees of vision, according to Motional, and the ability to see up to 300 meters away.  

In a recent interview, Karl Iagnemma, president and CEO, said born out of a $4 billion joint venture with Aptiv and Hyundai, Motional intentionally showcases the numerous sensors.  

“We see so many competitors bending over backward to try to hide this sensor suite and conceal it in these big plastic casings,” Iagnemma told.  

“And the fact is, you can’t hide the sensors. They need to be where they need to be and they’re an important part of the car and a key part of the technology. So, our strategy was to celebrate the sensors, and to adapt the design language of the vehicle and carry that through the design of the integrated sensor suite.”  

The company has still not announced the launch dates and place for its first driverless Robotaxi service. However, it will likely be on cities including Boston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, and Pittsburgh, some cities they are currently testing in.  

Lagnemma said that their research shows that the majority of ride-hailing trips are for two or fewer passengers. However, for Motional’s use case, loniq 5 is the right size vehicle.  

The Hyundai Ioniq 5 will be the first vehicle based on the Electric Global Modular Platform (E-GMP), their dedicated electric battery vehicle platform.   

The vehicle is equipped with an 800-volt electrical system. This system was debuted in Porsche Taycan, it is lighter, efficient, and allows the vehicle to charge faster. This will be fast-charging rate will be an important feature for robotaxi service.  

Iagnemma said the robotaxi version of the Ioniq 5 will be assembled by Hyundai, a noteworthy detail. 

 Read Also: Pony.ai Plans to Launch a Commercial Robotaxi Service in California by 2022

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The startup that currently operates in China and the United States plans to launch a commercial service there in 2022.  

They have started testing driverless vehicles daily on public roads in Fremont and Milpitas, California. Besides, they have started testing their driverless vehicles in Guangzhou, China.  

This summer, the startup will also plan to resume a rideshare service to the public in Irvine. They will be using AVs with a human safety driver to roll out the fully driverless services by 2022.  

James Peng, CEO and co-founder of Pony.ai, said “Going completely driverless is key to achieving full autonomy and an indispensable catalyst to realizing our ambitious vision.”   

Pony.ai still has some regulatory hurdles such as deployment permits to clear before they can operate commercially. The company’s driverless testing milestone comes just a month after they were issued a permit to test a fleet of six driverless vehicles.   

Also Read: Chinese Tech Company Develops Robot Dogs Based on Artificial Intelligence and Sensors

In total 55 companies have active permits to test autonomous vehicles. However, receiving permission for driverless vehicles is less common.   

Pony has become the eighth company to be issued a driverless testing permit after China’s AutoX, Baidu, and WeRide, and U. S’s Cruise, Nuro, Waymo, and Zoox.   

Since 2017, Pony.ai was allowed to test autonomous vehicles. Previously, they had tested ridesharing in Fremont and Irvine, California.   

In 2019, Pony.ai partnered with autonomous Hyundai Kona and Via’s ride-hailing platform for BotRide, the Robotaxi service. BotRide began shuttling customers on public roads but it wasn’t a driverless service, as there was a human safety driver at all times. The BotRide pilot concluded in January 2020.  

Then the company started operating PonyPilot in the Irvine area which is a public robotaxi service. With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, they shifted from shuttling people to packages and partnered with Yamibuy to provide an autonomous last-mile delivery service.   

“The delivery service was launched to provide additional capacity to address the surge of online orders triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Pony.ai.  

As the pandemic eases, Pony is preparing to launch its commercial Robotaxi service. The company has several partnerships or collaborations with automakers and suppliers and more than $1 billion in funding. They say as of last November, their valuation had reached $5.3 billion following a fresh $267 million in funding. 

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In Dubai, the robotaxi service will use the Cruise Origin which is an all-electric shuttle and is similar to a vehicle with no steering wheel or pedals. The shuttle is designed to travel at highway speeds.  

The Origin will be manufactured by GM which was originally unveiled in January 2020. 

The cruise will establish a new local company based in Dubai which will be responsible for the operation, deployment, and maintenance of the fleet. 

Also Read: Chinese Tech Company Develops Robot Dogs Based on Artificial Intelligence and Sensors

Initially, the service will start with a limited number of vehicles. In the coming year, it will be scaled up to a capacity of 4,000 vehicles by 2030. It will be a part of Dubai’s self-driving transport strategy sad the director-general and chairman of the board of the RTA, according to Mattar Mohammed Al Tayer.  

 Eventually, the robotaxis service will be introduced gradually and limited to specific areas. It will then expand to other parts of the city. 

Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Dubai’s Crown Prince, said the agreement with Cruise is a “major step towards realizing Dubai’s Self-Driving Transport Strategy aimed at converting 25% of total trips in Dubai into self-driving transport trips across different modes of transport by 2030.” 

Importantly, Cruise has a lock on Dubai and under the agreement, the company is the “exclusive provider” for self-driving taxis and ride-hailing services until 2029. 

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