Joined
·
637 Posts
They really want to replace us.
1 - 16 of 16 Posts
Joined
·
1,054 Posts
Doesn't matter. It's still decades before they can actually get a human OUT of the car. Especially think MN.. with our ever changing road construction, potholes, snow storms... It will only work sooner in cities with very nicely laid out grid streets that are sunny most of the year and never see temps below freezing.
Joined
·
779 Posts
You should view it the same way it has happened in other private sectors. Look at how automation has happened at McDonalds where they now have kiosks instead of cashiers taking orders. Yes, there are less cashiers but the rest of the restaurant is still staffed by humans.
Automation is gradual.
Most luxury vehicles have park assist (parallel parks by itself) which makes a valet’s job easier. Yet, park assist has not eliminated the the need for valet service.
A lot of luxury vehicles already exhibit features of self driving tech. The new Navigators have self drive during stop-and-go traffic.
If you think Uber is going to throw technology that is currently only available in luxury vehicles and charge people uberX rates—then think again.
Riding in a fully robot vehicle is a luxury. And they would be stupid to charge less than UberX rates. The first people to lose their jobs in rideshare are black car drivers.
Uber bought 20,000 Volvo CX90–so I believe they have plans to introduce a semi-robot experience at black car rates. The first robot car fleets will have one human inside whose job is to observe passenger conduct. They will most likely be trained on how to operate and over ride the system.
Perhaps the people manning this robot fleet will be “employees” paid 15$ per hour.
Finally, the investment move from Toyota suggests that IF Uber demonstrates a model that is profitable, then Toyota has dibs on who gets to build the next gen fleet of automated cars. This is only a speculative move by Toyota and I view it as a “foot in the door” rather than a full collaboration.
Automation is gradual.
Most luxury vehicles have park assist (parallel parks by itself) which makes a valet’s job easier. Yet, park assist has not eliminated the the need for valet service.
A lot of luxury vehicles already exhibit features of self driving tech. The new Navigators have self drive during stop-and-go traffic.
If you think Uber is going to throw technology that is currently only available in luxury vehicles and charge people uberX rates—then think again.
Riding in a fully robot vehicle is a luxury. And they would be stupid to charge less than UberX rates. The first people to lose their jobs in rideshare are black car drivers.
Uber bought 20,000 Volvo CX90–so I believe they have plans to introduce a semi-robot experience at black car rates. The first robot car fleets will have one human inside whose job is to observe passenger conduct. They will most likely be trained on how to operate and over ride the system.
Perhaps the people manning this robot fleet will be “employees” paid 15$ per hour.
Finally, the investment move from Toyota suggests that IF Uber demonstrates a model that is profitable, then Toyota has dibs on who gets to build the next gen fleet of automated cars. This is only a speculative move by Toyota and I view it as a “foot in the door” rather than a full collaboration.
Joined
·
779 Posts
Automated vehicles will most likely service routes with highest history of traffic. Depending on climate, the robot cars will either be sedan or SUV. You do not see police driving sedans during winter in MN. All police drive ford explorers during winter. Robot fleet will be the same way.
Joined
·
1,054 Posts
If you think Uber is bleeding money now.. think of buying 2 million self driving cars.. just for the US market. Even at a very cheap bulk price of lets say $20,000 per vehicle that would be 40 Billion dollars! They had better raise their rates.
Maybe cut the fleet by 75% since it would be more efficient? OK. Still 10 billion dollars... LOL :smiles: Plus more insurance coverage... and maintenance... and tires... and brakes... and car washes.. puke cleanup... sex cleanup (yep.. if no one is there I bet this happens) LOL good luck. I'm guessing 50+ years from now.. maybe. And least for the full fleet. Uber and Lyft will be gone LONG before 50 years. Unsustainable.
Maybe cut the fleet by 75% since it would be more efficient? OK. Still 10 billion dollars... LOL :smiles: Plus more insurance coverage... and maintenance... and tires... and brakes... and car washes.. puke cleanup... sex cleanup (yep.. if no one is there I bet this happens) LOL good luck. I'm guessing 50+ years from now.. maybe. And least for the full fleet. Uber and Lyft will be gone LONG before 50 years. Unsustainable.
Joined
·
98 Posts
And then lets see how PAX treats cars with no drivers. How much trash will they leave?
Joined
·
270 Posts
Uber is greedy so they'll probably install camera inside the car and bill pax for leaving trash.
Joined
·
15 Posts
When there is an accident now, mostly due to human error, the insurance companies step in and do the dance for their insured client. But with autonomous vehicles, there is an equipment manufacturer to sue. Was it a failure of the lidar, the IR sensors, the video ingest, the system that integrates all of that and who knows what else? As these vehicles begin deploying, the trial lawyers in this country will all be putting down payments on mansions and yachts as they lick their chops over the prospect of going after all sorts of companies!
Joined
·
779 Posts
This is from 2017. They've already bought the fleet. It only costed 1 billion.
Joined
·
1,054 Posts
WOW! Now only 1,976,000 to go to replace us all! Oh.. and 81 billion dollars! We're almost out of a job boys and girls.
Joined
·
779 Posts
No. Volvo CX90's are luxury vehicles. The demographic they are targeting is black car riders.
Black car rates have remained consistent through the years. Uber cuts rates on UberX because that is not the market they wish to enter with robot cars.
UberX gets people to use the Uber app the same way the dollar menu gets people to come to McDonalds. There will always be an UberX the same way that there will always be a dollar menu. Dollar menu operates at a loss the same way UberX operates at a loss.
Remember that the core of Uber from the very beginning is Black Car service. They cut prices to compete with Lyft. The Lyft culture is "affordable" rides for everyone including homeless people. You don't see that bullshit in Uber culture.
And if they really wanted to replace the UberX fleet, they would have purchased a billion dollars worth of Prius.
Volvo cx90 inscription
Joined
·
43 Posts
You do not see police driving sedans during winter in MN.
That would be except for the vast majority of 500 + MN State Patrol cars, which are Ford Taurus sedans.
Joined
·
779 Posts
Which ford will stop making along with fusion, fiesta, and ford focus. Law enforcement fleets will all be SUV in the near future.
Robot cars where it snows all the time will be SUV. Robot cars in the desert (Las Vegas) are sedans currently operated by Lyft.
If there is a threat to UberX and basic Lyft rides-it will be Lyft that will introduce robot sedans to chauffeur homeless people.
Joined
·
819 Posts
They could start a premium new service as an upgrade to Black/Lux: Uber Foot Massage.
Joined
·
1,368 Posts
I guess they can't lose money fast enough. Current market cap on Lyft is over 16 Billion. The company is no where close to turning a profit. This stock will be an exact reply of Boston Market and Kryspy Kreme. Just cashed in my short position on Lyft. Cha-Ching!!
P.S. guess who is going to get squeezed in an attempt to make this dog with fleas profitable?
P.S. guess who is going to get squeezed in an attempt to make this dog with fleas profitable?
Attachments
1 - 16 of 16 Posts
