On April 9, General Motors’ self-driving division, Cruise, announced that it would reintroduce operations in some areas- starting with Phoenix- after suspending them for roughly six months following an incident in San Francisco.
According to the company’s recent blog post, “In certain cities, beginning in Phoenix, Cruise is going back to driving by hand in order to compile road data and make maps. This work is done using human-driven vehicles without autonomous systems engaged.” Moreover, Cruise claims this action is crucial to validate its self-driving technologies and resume autonomous operations.
For context, last October, Cruise suspended its activities in the U.S. after one of its robotaxis dragged an individual hit by another vehicle in San Francisco. However, the incident has only fueled the team’s dedication to continuous improvement.
Cruise has been conducting rigorous testing in challenging environments and on closed courses during the operational halt of the past few months. This is to ensure continuous retraining and development, which has helped in instilling confidence in its ability to learn from past incidents and improve its technology.
Meanwhile, Waymo, Alphabet’s self-driving business, has been working and growing in Phoenix for several years and recently began providing autonomous rides on Phoenix’s freeways. Kyle Vogt, Cruise’s former CEO, has previously stated that the business would build more robust autonomous car technology in San Francisco than on the wide boulevards of a city like Phoenix by concentrating on that area.
