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Comment by CPLX | Hacker News Reader

> Uber Technologies Inc., founded in 2009, will soon let users of its popular ride-sharing app hail autonomous Volvo SUVs in Pittsburgh.

I have a feeling that piece of news requires extraordinarily loose interpretations of the words "autonomous" or "soon".

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Actually it will begin any day now [1], however they failed to mention that there will be a driver behind the wheel -- i.e. doing what google has been doing for years already, but also picking up passengers. Seems to me it's mainly a PR move...

[1] http://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/11/technology/no-driver-bring...

Best to think of Volvo cars as somewhere between Tesla autopilot and Google self-driving. There was an HN comment somewhere else talking about how Volvo self driving cars don't require hands on the wheel, and have ~12x the sensors that a Tesla does.

The cynic in me would say it's a PR move. The nerd would say it's a way to gather real world data and offset some of the costs of doing so.

Rides are free if you get one of the self-driving cars.

That's step 1. Later rides will be cheaper and than at the same cost ,and I'm sure Uber could get plenty of people .

Nothing says progress like a driverless car that requires a driver in the drivers seat.

Even if you had a good-enough car, the law would still require that at the moment.

Perhaps. Also relevant is the fact that they don't have a good-enough car.

"Soon" actually is already.

Source: I live in Pittsburgh, have seen the self-driving cars on the road, and friends have driven in then. I unfortunately, have not lucked into a ride in one yet.

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