With more than 5 million autonomous miles logged on Belgiumpublic roads, Google's self-driving car division, Waymo, is celebrating the major milestone with free rides in a driverless minivan.
Waymo has opened its doors to its driverless Chrysler Pacifica hybrid minivan wth a 360-degree ride-along in Phoenix, Arizona. The company has recreated what a self-driving car "sees" all around while driving around to improve the technology to one day implement autonomous vehicles on all roads.
Waymo started test driving its fleet of Pacificas without a driver in Phoenix in October. Starting in April similar driver-less test rides can happen on California public roads. Waymo has been testing in California since 2009 and always with a support driver.
The self-driving video shows the laser and sensor tracking from LIDAR technology (that sounds familiar because this was the coveted Light Detection and Ranging tech that Uber and Waymo argued over in court) and radar waves bounding off nearby objects. Cameras on the car pick up crucial information like if a streetlight is red or green. Based on Waymo's software the car predicts what pedestrians and bicyclists or the vehicle the next lane over will do -- and the video shows the car anticipating the next move.
Here's a side-by-side comparison of what a driverless ride looks like in reality against a computer representation of the road, obstacles, and other markings.
Waymo ramped up its mileage in the past year with 1 million miles driven in the past three months. It took five years for the company to test out its first million.
The immersive video can also be watched in a VR viewer or on mobile or desktop -- be sure to look behind you or even above to take in all the autonomy in action.
Topics Self-Driving Cars
What cracked the Milky Way's giant cosmic bone? Scientists think they know.
Emma Cline, Dan Bevacqua, and Robert Glück Recommend by The Paris Review
Deep Emotion, Plain Speech: Camus’s The Plague by Laura Marris
On the Far Side of Belmullet by Rebecca Bengal
NYT Strands hints, answers for April 14
Beautiful Losers: On Leonard Cohen by Nell Zink
Scenes from an Open Marriage by Jean Garnett
Custody by Constance Debré
The internet is talking like Kevin from 'The Office' now
Softball Season by Sophie Haigney
NYT Strands hints, answers for April 14
Clipboard, 2022 by Jesse Ball
Why Tights and No Knickers? by Sophie Haigney
Diary, 2011 by Andrew Martin
Best keyboard deals: Save on Asus gaming keyboards at Amazon
Returning to Salman Rushdie’s Haroun by The Paris Review
For the Record, the Review Has Not Abolished Fiction by The Paris Review
The Entangled Life: On Nancy Lemann by Krithika Varagur
'The Last of Us' Season 2, episode 3's opening credits has a heartbreaking change
The Ritz of the Bayou: Nancy Lemann’s Shabby
Apple's new processors will put Intel to shame, report saysNew website highlights the artful way that video games deliver infoA third monolith has now appeared in CaliforniaLondon street artist paints heartwarming tribute to Princess DianaAdorable dad stranded by Harvey tags along to daughter's grad school classes6 business podcasts to listen to this fallGoogle Authenticator for iOS gets its most important update yetBeloved author Terry Pratchett's dying wish to steamroll his hard drive fulfilled'The Hardy Boys' Review: Hulu mystery series is extremely fine.Apple might give us a hardware surprise in time for ChristmasGoogle fired an AI ethicist, and her former colleagues are up in armsApple gives older iPhones the gift of FaceTime HDPete Souza's latest Instagram reminds Donald Trump how presidents should act during disastersGoogle Maps will let Android users submit Street View photos from their phonesPeople are outraged over this new Australian antiApple released three iPads in 2020. Which is right for you?Aurora acquires Uber's selfPhotos of a super cool Macintosh Classic prototype surface onlineAurora acquires Uber's selfApple Fitness+ launches next week 'Kung Fu Panda 4' review: Jack Black's butt Richard Branson Shares Photos of His Private Island After Irma Apple already unbans Epic Games, will allow Fortnite on iPhone in EU Best vacuum deal: Get the Bissell SpotClean Pet Pro portable carpet cleaner for under $130 10 SXSW films you'll want to know about before the fest begins Backbone controller deal: Get 30% off at Amazon Why celebs are donning red buttons for the red carpet The 'Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire' AR experience lets you catch ghosts at home How to watch 'Anatomy of a Fall': Release date, streaming deals, and more Uber, Lyft suspend some Florida service ahead of Hurricane Irma How to pair an Apple Watch to your iPhone 'Love Lies Bleeding' review: Kristen Stewart headlines gnarly masterpiece Wordle today: The answer and hints for March 8 'Dune: Part 2' co Miami mother delivers baby alone during Hurricane Irma, which inspired the newborn's name Best smart speaker deal: Buy two Amazon Echo speakers and save $80 Best smart home deals: 33% off Amazon Smart Home devices Chromebook vs. laptop: What are the differences? TikTok ban proposed in U.S. could impact all Chinese apps Wordle today: The answer and hints for March 7