Investors are betting big that autonomous vehicles are here to stay.
What happened: Applied Intuition, a startup making autonomous vehicle software, closed a US$600 million funding round, giving it a $15 billion valuation. The company works with 18 major automakers, including Volkswagen and Toyota, and recently partnered with OpenAI.
- Applied Intuition focuses on “embedded intelligence,” which is the AI- and machine learning-powered secret sauce that trains devices to execute tasks without humans.
- The company offers simulation software that lets manufacturers train and test a vehicle's capabilities without having to hit the road.
Why it matters: The funding round is a resounding vote of confidence in self-driving cars, which are on track to become permanent fixtures on the roadways of the future. As it turns out, despite some safety concerns, people like being chauffeured without a chauffeur.
- A new study analyzing standard Waymo robotaxi fares in San Francisco found that the average price was nearly $5 more than an Uber and $6 more than a Lyft (and even more during peak hours), but that higher costs didn’t decrease demand.
- More robotaxis will hit U.S. roads soon, as the White House eases regulations and Tesla launches its own service.
Yes, but: In Canada, robotaxis are still far off, as fully autonomous cars are illegal across the country. While Ontario, Manitoba, and Québec do allow for the testing of self-driving cars on public roadways, it can only be done under pilot projects with strict rules.—QH