A death involving an autonomous car was inevitable. However, when an Uber test vehicle in autonomous mode struck and killed Elaine Herzberg, a pedestrian pushing a bicycle across a road on the outskirts of Tempe, the automotive industry received a loud wake-up call. The race to develop autonomous cars was temporarily put on hold, and the industry took stock. Technology, regulations, liability, process and public acceptance – in the wake of that crash, all stakeholders have carefully examined every aspect of autonomous vehicle testing.

This exclusive Automotive World report investigates the implications of the Uber crash, and its impact on the development of autonomous vehicles.

In this report:

• Executive summary
• How it happened: the Phoenix Uber Crash
• Uber crash a wake-up call, but autonomous drive development continues
• Co-operation between parties and state essential for safer autonomous driving
• Driver liability unsuitable for AVs, but legislators should go slow
• Uber crash casts doubt over Level 3 and 4 autonomous systems
• Self-driving cars need better perception to deal with the unexpected
• The distinction between assisted and autonomous driving will be crucial
• The autonomous future will be safer, but public awareness is essential
• AV development after Phoenix: less haste, more speed

‘Special report: Implications of the Uber Phoenix crash’ features an exclusive article by Arunprasad Nandakumar, Team Leader for Chassis, Safety and Autonomous Driving Systems at Frost & Sullivan, and his colleague Benny Daniel, Vice President – Consulting, Europe, as well as exclusive insight from industry experts, including:

• Jennifer Morrison, Investigator-in-Charge for the Uber Crash investigation, National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB)
• Austin Russell, Chief Executive, Luminar
• Richard Schram, Technical Manager, Euro NCAP
• Matthew Avery, Director of Research, Thatcham Research
• Melinda Lohmann, Director of the Research Centre for Information Law, and Assistant Professor for Business Law, University of St Gallen
• Andreas Hermann, Director of Centre for Customer Insight, University of St Gallen; author: Autonomous Driving: How the Driverless Revolution Will Change the World
• Chris Jones, Vice President and Chief Analyst, Canalys

…