Toyota Reveals A Dirty Truth, Self Driving Cars Still Struggling With Simple Tasks

The head of Toyota's billion-dollar U.S. artificial intelligence research center delivered a reality check on Friday for anyone over-enamored by autonomous car technology: the cars aren't as clever as you think.

"I want to help the press and the public understand that when they see a car that does not have a human being behind the wheel and it seems to be driving, that the car is not as intelligent as a human being behind the wheel, even though it seems it might be," he said.

He was speaking in Tokyo at the announcement of the Silicon Valley center. Toyota will open it in January 2016 to drive artificial intelligence and robotics research, both for autonomous vehicles and other projects.

Pratt explained what researchers already know but perhaps others don't: Autonomous cars look great in controlled environments but soon fail when faced with tasks that human drivers find simple.

MDarringer - 11/13/2015 7:53:33 PM

+1 Boost

Very luxury is the best luxury.

mpls - 11/13/2015 4:57:53 PM

+4 Boost

Man, you are so fake, you are just baiting for someone to argue with..
Whoever that takes that bate is dumb as you are !

TheSteve - 11/13/2015 5:40:11 PM

+3 Boost

I'm choosing not to feed the trolls in the hopen that they'll go away.

Runamukk - 11/13/2015 5:10:05 PM

+4 Boost

Toyota sucks...especially the Camry!...lol

trmckin - 11/13/2015 6:50:34 PM

+3 Boost

Toyota #9 on that list.

TomM - 11/14/2015 3:32:48 PM

+4 Boost

Actually - AnimeJapan probably knows very little about the Camry - a car he has said he owns.

THe Camry sold in the USA is an AMERICAN car - not a Japanese one. In Japan - cars may a tax based on the Width of the car - and a Camry there is a different car that is several inches narrower than the USA car. And if he considers the Camry to be a pinnacle luxury car - which even a Lexus is not - he does not know what Luxury is. The Camry is nothing more than transportation - is no spectacular in any way - and is no more reliable than several other cars in its class too.

Socalcarnut - 11/15/2015 4:16:03 PM

+2 Boost

The irony of Toyota saying this....people who drive Toyotas struggle with simple tasks as well...such as turn signals, riding brake pedal, going too slow in the passing lane, parking in between the lines in a parking spot...on and on....