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Why Google Made Its Self-Driving Car So Darn Cute
- Joeboy 12y agoI can't get beyond the second slide. Possibly because > TypeError: a.adsReloadAd is not a function Edit: Oh, I can if I turn adBlock off.
- Mithaldu 12y agoIf you click on the list button in the top right you get a much superior reading format. :)
- higherpurpose 12y agoYou can also press that button to see them as a top-down list.
- swombat 12y agoTotally hate the format... what is this, Buzzfeed meets TechCrunch? As if TechCrunch's main stream of news wasn't "mainstream" enough already...
- 001sky 12y ago20 page slideshow with forced ads! Nice.
- waterlesscloud 12y agoNice catch about the shape minimizing blind spots for the roof-mounted lasers.
- akumen 12y agoCute? Personally, I think it is fugly.
- cliveowen 12y agoAgreed, and that enormous thing on the roof just shouldn't be there. "Google plans to build 100 to 200 of these prototypes, and work towards safety approval by the end of the year. The future’s coming a lot faster than we thought." If this is the future I hope there will be time travel, so I can go back.
- swalsh 12y agoSeriously, your big problem with self driving cars is you think a giant laser on top is ugly?
- iagooar 12y agoI can kind of understand that. Cars are not only a motor on 4 wheels. Design is one of the most important aspects when man building and selling cars, so it is not strange that people think of the camera as something that doesn't fit. Until Tesla came and showed an electrical car that actually DID attract car / driving fans, the majority of people wouldn't consider an electrical car because most of them were plain ugly, even if the technology underneath was plain neat. Same thing with self driving cars. I know it's not top priority for now, but I think the real breakthrough will be achieved by a completely redesigned and appealing car.
- zanny 12y ago> I think the real breakthrough will be achieved by a completely redesigned and appealing car. Hopefully, on a Tesla. Tesla range and safety design + self driving. I'd pay six figures for that.
- afarrell 12y agoBut part of the point of Tesla is that lots of hobbyists and researchers and failed companies already did the work for proving that electric cars are feasible on a basic level. They could take that work and on top of it build cars that are beautiful and have refined engineering. Aside from the DARPA challenge in the desert, Google has had to start from square 1, so it needs to accept that it will build ugly cars first.
- annnnd 12y agoAgreed, but the point here is that it makes people more trusting towards it. I am guessing that if it looked more sleek (think: Ferrari) people would be more scared of getting in the vehicle. Big eyes, round shapes, smile without teeth... it doesn't look dangerous at all. That was also one of the points of this article (as I understood it). I wonder how would it look if Apple made one too? I am sure it would be much more stylish.
- smanuel 12y ago> The cute design minimizes fear about the risks of self-driving vehicles I'm sorry but no cute design can repair the damage done by this episode of Silicon Valley: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-eAONrlcfJg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-eAONrlcfJg Sorry Mr. Car
- jacquesm 12y agoWhat is the ANCAP rating for these? Cute they might be but they look to be quite flimsy in construction. Maybe that's one of the reasons why they are so slow, not just to avoid the risks of high speed impact but also so that they don't have to be tested right alongside the output of the rest of the automobile industry. That gives google time to perfect the software in a real world traffic without all the costs and competition with regular car manufacturers. It is reminiscent of the Aixam line (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aixam http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aixam) of microcars.
- Theodores 12y agoI doubt they have done the ANCAP/NCAP ratings (given the recent story about how lots of AUDI models are not NCAP rated it could be a while). There is a tubular 'roll cage' type of thing going on with it, reminiscent of rally cars and kit cars. Given that rally cars have roll cages and normal cars do not, I for one look on a roll cage as a good thing, even if the rest of the box is prototype bits of plastic. Part of a safety rating is the effect a car has on pedestrians. People can get killed by hood ornaments even at a relatively low speed. To date very few cars have been specifically designed with pedestrian safety in mind. One of the few was the Austin Metro and that was a long time ago. It does look as if the Google people have thought of pedestrian safety - it is a big part of the self driving concept and it also appears to be part of the implementation. I wouldn't be at all surprised if the final implementation of the driver-less car is in a whole new level of safety compared to regular cars with the difference being like the difference between 'tame' and 'wild' animals.
- superJoy 12y agoIt has a tubular cage like that because space frames are about the easiest way to build the primary structure for a one-off or low production vehicle. It's not a particularly safe way to build a car for passengers without helmets. There's no padding on the cage either. Every race series that requires cages also requires helmets and padding.
- josefresco 12y agoPretty sure while they may look flimsy, these care are anything but. I believe there are several micro-cars on sale now that have a very safe inner structures as well as advanced safety features despite looking "cute". Example: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smart_%28automobile%29#Safety http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smart_%28automobile%29#Safety
- deleted 12y ago[deleted]
- swalsh 12y agoThey must have hired a PR person to join the team :D there's some noticeable features missing. I would have loved to see a giant LCD screen showing me whatever I might want to know... but I think that would make people insinuate that google's going to use it to bombard them with ads.
- higherpurpose 12y agoI actually think it's a pretty smart idea. You don't have to "own" one of these, so it's not like you'll care much about the design suiting your style. They will be used more like taxis or delivery cars. You don't have to like that all taxis are yellow and look the same.
- fidotron 12y agoMaybe they're actually going after the Asian market, and not the US one? It never ceases to amaze me how narrow minded much of the North American market is about the dichotomy between cute and cool/powerful. (You could quite easily make the case some markets are the extreme opposite). The console market has this too, which is one of the reasons the XBox brand has a sort of imposed low ceiling on success outside of the English speaking world. For example: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PaPeRo https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PaPeRo They supposedly worked quite hard to balance cuteness, which was regarded as a necessity, with functionalism, and it's got enough echoes I wonder if the people behind this car had seen it.
- inappropriate 12y agoCup-holders in a future car aren't the hallmark of timeless design. This makes me curious to know more about this inappropriate decision.
- josefresco 12y agoWhy are they out of place? Sports cars lack them because you're supposed to be focused on driving. If the you aren't driving, I would think cup holders would make more sense than ever.
- jmpeax 12y agoBeing a programmer, a sci-fi fan, and always excited by new developments even from a young age, I thought I'd never reach a time where I would find it difficult to accept new technology. Clones, immortality, interstellar travel, tech-enabled telepathy, bring it on. I now realise that sitting in a self-driving car will cause me to press on the ghost brake pedal while sweating with anxiety every time it needs to slow down, while kids who will grow up with these things will not even raise their pulse by 1 beat per minute.
- annnnd 12y ago> I now realise that sitting in a self-driving car will cause me to press on the ghost brake pedal while sweating with anxiety No it won't. :) In next versions you will probably not be facing the road anyway. Do you "ghost brake" when driving in the back of a limousine?
- askew 12y agoHah - when travelling in the passenger seat I often see my dad try and brake when I leave it a little later than he would. He also grips on to the handle above the window.
- unwind 12y agoI do this myself, but I really experience it as bracing myself using my feet, to avoid having my torso and head move forward when the car brakes. The handle is handy (!) for the same purpose. People always seem to think that I'm "ghost-braking", but I'm pretty certain I'm just trying to stabilize my body because it's uncomfortable to be jostled around. I don't "ghost-blinker" at corners ...
- swombat 12y agoDo you "ghost brake" when driving in the back of a limousine? Yep. I'm frequently uncomfortable when someone else is driving. There's a handful of people in the world who don't make me uncomfortable when driving... my parents, a few friends who drive "safely"... Oh, and taxi drivers (where somehow my lizard brain appreciates that though I am not in control, the creature that IS in control has 100+ times more experience of driving than me, and is therefore unarguably a better driver). Though not all taxi drivers - some of the minicab (as opposed to licensed black cab) drivers make me nervous. So for this technology to work for me and not make me nervous each time I step into it, I'll have to really get to trust it. I'm not sure putting a cute face on the front of the car is gonna do that for me, but the effort is definitely worthwhile.
- ehurrell 12y agoAs my old AI lecturer put it "If a person driving a car runs over a person that driver is at fault, if an AI driving a car runs over a person that AI will probably never be used again in any car.", so it's interesting to see the 'cute' approach they are taking to, as the article says "minimize the fear".
- andrey-p 12y agoI looked at the images and my initial gut reaction was "aww, I can't be afraid of _that_!" even if I still find the idea scary. I think it's a very successful design.
- ehurrell 12y agoI'd agree, except that quote stuck with me!
- bitJericho 12y agoOne software change could rule out that same accident ever happening again. You can't retrain every driver everytime an accident occurs, but you can reprogram every automated car.
- ehurrell 12y agoRationally yes, it's probably easy to argue that point, but his point, as a huge believer in AI applications, was that emotionally the 'killer robot cars' sentiment would break a fragile trust, as against the implicit common humanity of human drivers.
- bitJericho 12y agoI realize this, but I disagree with the conclusion. I think just like today we have scarred individuals that refuse to drive, ride, or even take left turns, the same thing will happen with AI cars. Some people won't use them, but vast majority will realize we're better off, or at least feel that way. Some say we may be better off going back to the forests, and I don't know if I disagree with that some days!
- shiven 12y agoA future with no taxis! No Lyft or Uber either. Less and less humans tied up doing work that can be done by a "bash script"[0]. I look forward to this! [0] Or highly advanced AI for that matter. Same final impact.
- tcwatrous 12y agoWhat makes you think you won't be calling a self driving car to pick you up on the Uber app?
- shiven 12y agoI'd love for that to happen! But I always thought Uber/Lyft's equation worked only due to idle cars and underemployed humans, at least in a large part?
- sp332 12y agoSure, but if I own a self-driving car and I'm not currently using it, I wouldn't even have to get out of bed to send my car over to you and get some money :)
- pbhjpbhj 12y agoA future with self-driving cars makes more sense if all cars are taxis (of some form). Why leave your car stationary overnight (except perhaps to charge) when it can be out driving people around and earning money? I'd like to see a system where one could purchase a guarantee that you'd get a car of a particular class to take you where you need to go within a given time (shorter time, higher cost; if you decide you can always wait 60mins for a ride from the time of booking the management of availability is far easier). Or, you'd just book journeys in advance - cheaper if you match logistical requirements. Then car ownership can be far more optimally managed.
- drb311 12y agoBook a car in advance? Stone age! Google Now will figure out where you need to be, and have a car waiting for you when you open the door.
- nodata 12y agos/Cute/Ugly/;
- robg 12y agoI've been amazed at how persistent animacy is. http://ai.ato.ms/MITECS/Entry/hatano.html http://ai.ato.ms/MITECS/Entry/hatano.html Seeing life in inanimate things provides a deep source of recognition.
- uptown 12y agoThe shape reminds me a little of an older marketing campaign from VW. They promoted the strength of the VW Bug's arc. http://www.alanpafenbach.com/vwminisite/webroot/websites/rfar/flash/index.html http://www.alanpafenbach.com/vwminisite/webroot/websites/rfa... (Warning - Flash) http://www.popsci.com/diy/article/2010-01/vin-amp-vin-vs-super-beetle http://www.popsci.com/diy/article/2010-01/vin-amp-vin-vs-sup...
- justinph 12y agoI wonder what car it is based on, if any. Is it electric or gasoline powered? The seats look like they're from a Fiat.
- pistle 12y agoIs all the gapping, creases, and folding a feature of the Fiat? A little extra work on tension/tucking would have given a better fit and finish.
- frik 12y agoIt looks similar to a VW Beetle/Bug, an economy car produced by the German auto maker Volkswagen (VW) from 1938-2003: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volkswagen_Beetle http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volkswagen_Beetle (scroll down to the prototype and influence sections and compare the photos)
- toxican 12y agoEvery time a self-driving car story pops up, I think of Rush's Red Barchetta. I have a sinking feeling we're eventually going to get to a point where traditional cars are completely outlawed. I definitely would love to be driven to work every morning, but I know I'd miss having the option to drive myself with the windows down. Driving can be fun!
- lars512 12y agoI'm sure they'll have historical districts where you can rent an old time car and drive manually on weekends, with the appropriate waivers and insurance forms signed :)
- krapp 12y agoA future where personal freedom and autonomy is treated as a dangerous and obsolete quirk? Where do I sign up?
- deleted 12y ago[deleted]
- Retric 12y agoYou can still ride a horse just not on public roads. I expect driving to be no different.
- toxican 12y agoHa...I've been through Amish country and obviously they still do the horse/buggy thing. It has me thinking of a neo amish faction that will still drive cars on the side of the road at 60mph while all of the self-driven cars blaze by at 500mph.
- mxfh 12y agoNo need to outlaw anything. But getting a human driven car insured for urban traffic will be quite likely seen as a luxury/leisure expense someday.
- matobago 12y agoIs this made by Tesla? The seats and the look of the factory is very similar... just wondering
- fixermark 12y agoSuddenly, that Boston Dynamics purchase clicks into a bigger picture.
- csixty4 12y agoI love the cute, organic design. It'll make it more approachable for a lot of everyday users. But I wonder if they're shooting themselves in the foot with the automotive set: people passionate about their cars, who have a lot of their identity tied to their relationships with their automobiles. I remember when the Aptera[1] was announced and "car people" slammed it for not looking like…a car. They wouldn't be caught dead driving such a strange-looking vehicle. Does Google have a plan to address these criticisms and stop them from poisoning the discussion around the product? [1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aptera_2_Series http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aptera_2_Series