Pivotal Moments in Self-Driving Technology History

The journey to autonomous vehicles has been marked by significant breakthroughs, from early radio-controlled cars to the launch of commercial robotaxi services.

The top 3

1. First Public Robotaxi Service Launches: Waymo was the first to commercialize a robotaxi service in Phoenix, Arizona, with operations starting in November 2019, following earlier trials by AutoX in Shenzhen and Cruise in San Francisco.
2. Milestones in Fully Driverless City Approvals: Waymo opened its fully driverless service to the public in San Francisco in June 2024, while Baidu Apollo Go operates fully driverless fleets across multiple major Chinese cities.
3. Earliest Significant AV Technology Breakthroughs: The earliest documented instance of autonomous vehicle research dates back to 1925 with a radio-controlled driverless car in New York City by Houdina Radio Control, followed by Carnegie Mellon University's Navlab projects in 1984.

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