Earlier this year, a viral video created by Mark Rober offered many viewers a detailed look at how different forms of self-driving software used technology to see what was in front of them. One of the big takeaways from that video was that Tesla’s technology doesn’t use LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging), opting instead for a system of cameras, which meant that it could be, for all intents and purposes, tricked.
The ramifications of that difference in technology go beyond viral videos, however. Fortune’s Jessica Matthews reports that Ford CEO Jim Farley cited a preference for LiDAR-based technology as the reason why he feels more enthusiastic about Waymo’s self-driving software than its counterpart at Tesla.
Farley shared these opinions at this year’s Aspen Ideas Festival, when he was interviewed onstage by Walter Isaacson. Farley told Isaacson that he preferred Waymo’s approach for a simple reason: “We really believe that LiDAR is mission critical.”
“[W]here the camera will be completely blinded, the LiDAR system will see exactly what’s in front of you,” Farley explained, though he also mentioned that he and Elon Musk have discussed self-driving technology.
Is Industry Collaboration the Best Way Forward for Self-Driving Cars?
SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son believes automakers will have the best shot at a breakthrough by working togetherAs for Tesla, the company recently launched its robotaxi service in Austin, Texas — though instead of a splashy media-focused event, the company opted to invite what The Verge’s Mack DeGeurin described as “a close-knit cohort of Tesla influencers and Elon Musk superfans.” As Fred Lambert noted in an article for Electrek, Waymo has been signing deals with multiple automakers even as Tesla ramps up its technology. It’s an arms race with no drivers behind the wheel.
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