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> I'm surprised/disappointed that government hasn't been more instrumental in pushing forward an agenda of promoting self-driving cars The DARPA Grand Challeng

by dcposch 10y ago

> I'm surprised/disappointed that government hasn't been more instrumental in pushing forward an agenda of promoting self-driving cars The DARPA Grand Challenge in 2005 and Urban Challenge in 2007 are what started it all. Now that Google, Uber and others are racing to commercialize, all the government has to do is not overregulate. No need to "push forward an agenda". (FWIW DARPA, then known as ARPA, did the same thing the internet a few decades ago.)

cpeterso 10y ago
There's a rule-of-thumb that academic research takes 10–15 years to be commercialized, so we're right on schedule now 10 years after DARPA's 2005 and 2007 Challenges. :)
- deleted 10y ago
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- tnecniv 10y ago
  I can't wait for 10 years from now when I have a walking robot slave then from the recent grand challenges
fma 10y ago
My university had participated in those challenges. They were pretty cool. But yes, once it was proven that something was possible it open the flood gates for commercialization. I'm more surprised/disappointed that someone on HN wasn't aware of those initiatives. It shows why people are for defunding government research. Though I imagine DARPA being part of the military, wouldn't have been in that boat, but my point remains the same to NASA, NSF, NOAA etc.
- SwellJoe 10y ago
  "I'm more surprised/disappointed that someone on HN wasn't aware of those initiatives." You've made an assumption that I'm unaware of them, which is incorrect. I just think they're very small in the grand scheme of things. The DARPA challenges are a blip on the radar of the federal budget, as it relates to highways, auto safety, fuel efficiency, and a variety of other areas where self-driving cars will have a tremendous impact.
tachim 10y ago
This is false. People were thinking about and researching autonomous driving seriously since the 80s: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_autonomous_cars https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_autonomous_cars.

by dcposch 10y ago

cpeterso 10y ago

There's a rule-of-thumb that academic research takes 10–15 years to be commercialized, so we're right on schedule now 10 years after DARPA's 2005 and 2007 Challenges. :)

deleted 10y ago
[deleted]
tnecniv 10y ago
I can't wait for 10 years from now when I have a walking robot slave then from the recent grand challenges

fma 10y ago

My university had participated in those challenges. They were pretty cool. But yes, once it was proven that something was possible it open the flood gates for commercialization. I'm more surprised/disappointed that someone on HN wasn't aware of those initiatives. It shows why people are for defunding government research. Though I imagine DARPA being part of the military, wouldn't have been in that boat, but my point remains the same to NASA, NSF, NOAA etc.

SwellJoe 10y ago
"I'm more surprised/disappointed that someone on HN wasn't aware of those initiatives." You've made an assumption that I'm unaware of them, which is incorrect. I just think they're very small in the grand scheme of things. The DARPA challenges are a blip on the radar of the federal budget, as it relates to highways, auto safety, fuel efficiency, and a variety of other areas where self-driving cars will have a tremendous impact.

tachim 10y ago

This is false. People were thinking about and researching autonomous driving seriously since the 80s: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_autonomous_cars https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_autonomous_cars.