Uber’s initial fleet included 20 Ford Fusions, which seemed like a whole armada back when autonomous cars still felt like science fiction. Initially, though, the project kicked off in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where Uber had hired a bunch of researchers from Carnegie Mellon University and helped revitalize Pittsburgh’s Strip district with the opening of the company’s Advanced Technologies Center. (Pay attention, kiddos, for this is important later on.) Shortly after, Arizona Governor Doug Ducey invited Uber to test its cars in the state. How did it all start?įollowing months of rumors and vocal support for automation on Uber's part, Uber first announced its intentions to amass a fleet of automatic cars in February 2015, which happened to be the same week that Google announced its own interest in autonomous car technology.
How far will uber drive pittsburgh drivers#
Lately, though, Uber has set its sights on replacing human drivers through its self-driving car program.įew other firms have embraced this initiative with as much zeal and resources, and the San Francisco-based company had self-driving cars on public streets well before some of its most prominent competitors.īelow, we've compiled everything you need to know about Uber's self-driving car initiative. Uber started out as a service that was as appealing to potential drivers as it was to urban passengers weary of cabs: with your own car and some spare time, you could make some cash by ferrying folks to where they needed to go. You can read more on what's in the initial NTSB report here.