Automakers United Against Google Winning Map War

On any given day, there could be a half dozen autonomous cars mapping the same street corner in Silicon Valley. These cars, each from a different company, are all doing the same thing: building high-definition street maps, which may eventually serve as an on-board navigation guide for driverless vehicles.

These companies converge where the law and weather are welcoming -- or where they can get the most attention. For example, a flock of mapping vehicles congregates every year in the vicinity of the CES technology trade show, a hot spot for self-driving feats. "There probably have been 50 companies that mapped Las Vegas simply to do a CES drive," said Chris McNally, an analyst with Evercore ISI. "It's such a waste of resources."

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TomM - 2/21/2018 6:42:12 PM

+2 Boost

The Institute for Automotive research (Whoever they are) has now come out with a report that says that a decade from now - Evs and autonomous vehicle will still hold only a minor percentage of the total market. And they predict it will be several more decades before they become truly accepted.

I Look at an autonomous vehicle as a Taxi or Limo that can take me to the airport (ANd I can drive that leg) - and instead of parking long term - it can drive itself "home" and come back and get me when I return. IT will also be good for my mom's generation when they no longer have the ability to actually drive a car themselves. But - frankly - I still trust myself driving to any computer - and if I am going to be responsible anyway - I may as well be actually driving.