If one goes by the claims of the big-talking CEO of Tesla Elon Musk, the man who cannot be kept out of the global headlines these days, self-driving tech in cars, without the need for the supervision or presence of human, will become a reality by around the same time next year.
According to a report in Electrek, Musk, who is Brazil in connection with a SpaceX program, said Tesla will have self-driving cars without the need for people behind the wheel in about a year from now.
As it happens, it is a claim that Musk is not dropping for the first time. The Electrek report pointed out that Musk had earlier said that Tesla will have 1 million robotaxis on the road by the end of the year since 2020. Robotaxi is basically driver-less cabs. In December 2015, Musk predicted 'complete autonomy' within two years. Of course, nothing has happened.
Situation on ground not encouraging
Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) Beta has self-driving system features, but as the vehicles are frequently involved in raod incidents, a driver or supervisor is needed at the wheel to stop unseemly mishaps.
Talking of FSD, Tesla has released FSD 10.12.1 beta to its Early Access Programme that includes new visuals for open car doors and also displays turn signals on other cars. The vehicle will now show details like its brake lights coming on in front of users or car doors being opened. The system will also show bicyclists and pedestrians differently, and tell clearly whether the vehicle is parked or just caught in traffic.
The new update has 'reduced traffic control related false slowdowns, 'in response to the Phantom Braking phenomenon that many FSD users had reported.
An autonomous car/vehicle is capable of sensing its environment and operating without human involvement. A human passenger is not required to take control of the vehicle at any time, nor is a human passenger required to be present in the vehicle at all. Aside from Tesla, a few others are logging thousands of road miles to train self-driving algorithms and AI sensors to drive better and provide complete safety. GM’s Cruise, Alphabet's Waymo, Baidu, and others have invested huge sums of money in self-driving vehicle tech.
And many of them say that vehicles without steering wheels or brake pedals --- the ultimate driverless vehicle --- is still many years away. Among the issues still to be sorted out include unpredictable traffic patterns, and weather factors. Social awareness and acceptance issues also need to be factored in. Considering all those, Musk's latest claim may remain just that --- a typical brash Muskian claim, that is.
