Alphabet’s Waymo Cuts Cost of Key Self-Driving Sensor by 90%
- Rolls out autonomous Chrysler minivan ready for road testing
- CEO doesn’t say when system will be available for consumers
Alphabet Launches Self-Driving Car Unit Named Waymo
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Alphabet Inc.’s self-driving car unit, Waymo, has slashed the cost of a key technology required to bring self-driving cars to the masses and rolled it out Sunday in an autonomous Chrysler Pacifica minivan.
Waymo has cut costs by 90 percent on LiDAR sensors, which bounce light off objects to create a three-dimensional map of a car’s surroundings. The breakthrough will let Waymo bring the technology to millions of consumers, John Krafcik, Waymo’s chief executive officer, said in a speech at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.