The Robot Report

Cruise First to Launch L4 Robotaxi Service in Major US City

Organization: Cruise
Country: USA
Website: www.getcruise.com
Year Founded: 2013
Number of Employees: 500+

Cruise can operate robotaxis between 11 PM and 5 AM at a maximum speed of 30 MPH.

Description:
RBRlogoCruise, the autonomous driving subsidiary of General Motors, opened up its Level 4 robotaxis to a limited portion of the public in San Francisco on Feb. 1 2022. There are no human safety drivers inside these robotaxis. For now, the rides are free and those who join the waitlist don’t have to sign a non-disclosure agreement before using the service. 

California’s Department of Motor Vehicles is allowing Cruise to operate its robotaxis around certain parts of San Francisco between 10 PM and 6 AM at a maximum speed of 30 MPH.

Analysis:
Cruise’s robotaxi service is only open to a small number of people in San Francisco, but this is the first driverless robotaxi service to launch in a major US city. Over time, the service should expand its operating area and timeslot to gather important crucial operational data and continue to improve its already exceptional performance.


Waymo’s robotaxi service has been active since October 2020 in suburban Phoenix, where the driving environment is far friendlier than San Francisco.


This milestone also triggered the release of another $1.35 billion in funding for Cruise. Cruise is betting its model of tackling more complicated cities first will let it scale to other markets more quickly than its competitors. - Steve Crowe



 
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