Across the automated vehicle sector, the leadership of inspiring women is transforming transportation and propelling these new technologies forward. In honor of Women’s History Month, we sat down with Indu Vijayan, Head of Product Management at Aeye and founder of the group Women in Autonomy, to talk about the critical role women play in the AV industry.

Women in Autonomy is a forum created to educate, equip and empower women building autonomous technology. The group aims to strengthen the AV sector by pushing for women’s representation in the industry, by highlighting women’s leadership, and by creating opportunities for women and girls to explore careers in the burgeoning field.

Tune in to this #PAVEcast episode to learn more about Women in Autonomy and how the group is working to change the landscape for women in the AV industry.

Public transit is a vital part of everyday life for communities across the country, providing millions of Americans with access to jobs, health care, groceries, education, and other essentials. Transit is the backbone of the mobility ecosystem for many urbanized areas, and is a transportation lifeline in communities across the country—yet 45% of Americans do not have access to transit. Innovative public-private partnerships are beginning to reveal a range of use cases where autonomous vehicles (AVs) can augment existing transit networks.

In recent years, transit agencies and AV developers have collaborated on pilot projects to explore how AVs can enhance mobility options for transit users. Incorporating AVs into public transit can help to connect riders to more transit routes and destinations with right-sized vehicles that can increase efficiency. In order to maximize the benefits of autonomy, we must also consider how to effectively introduce AVs alongside existing mobility options, prioritize accessibility for people with disabilities and older adults, and educate riders on how to interact with these new services.

Panelists:

• Allanté Whitmore, Director, Autonomous Vehicle Initiative, Securing America's Future Energy (SAFE)
• Daisy Wall, Director of Government Business, May Mobility

The integration of on-demand autonomous vehicle (AV) services into public transport systems has the potential to revolutionize the way we move around our cities and rural areas. By providing more flexible and accessible transportation options, on-demand AV services could help reduce traffic congestion, lower emissions, and improve the overall efficiency of public transport networks. However, there are also a number of challenges associated with this integration, including concerns around safety, equity, and the impact on existing public transport services. This topic is of great interest to a wide range of stakeholders, including public transport authorities and operators, technology companies and citizens.

The panel will explore the opportunities and challenges associated with the integration of on-demand AV services into public transport systems, including the potential to improve the efficiency, accessibility, and sustainability of public transport. The discussion will also focus on the role of technology and policy in enabling this integration and ensuring that it is inclusive and equitable for all members of the community.

The virtual panel session brings together experts from various backgrounds such as public transport authority and technology companies. Panelists will share their perspectives on the potential benefits and risks of on-demand AV services in public transport and explore strategies for maximizing the positive impacts of these technologies.

Panelists:

• Christian Lichtmannecker – Mobileye
• Freya Hofmann – ioki – Digital Public Transport
• Lars Gunnar Lundestad – Ruter As

Earlier this year,  Zoox began operating its electric and autonomous vehicles on public roads in California. This was a major milestone for AV technology, as Zoox’s robotaxis are exclusively designed for autonomous passenger transportation—and therefore do not have a driver’s seat, steering wheel, or other controls for a human driver.

Zoox’s robotaxi highlights the opportunity to fundamentally rethink traditional vehicle designs, which revolve around the assumption of a human in the driver’s seat. This assumption was also built into many of the decades-old regulations that govern vehicles in the United States, known as the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS).

Amanda Prescott, Director of Homologation at Zoox, joined us on the PAVEcast to discuss how the company worked to deploy their robotaxi within a federal regulatory framework that was designed with human drivers in mind. Amanda led Zoox’s effort to gain approval to operate its robotaxi on public roads in California, as well as the company’s process to self-certify its robotaxi to FMVSS. Tune in to hear Amanda discuss how Zoox navigated legacy vehicle regulations to make their innovative robotaxi service a reality. 

Humanising Autonomy has every intention of staying true to their name as they work to ensure that machines and AI can better understand naturalistic human behavior and intention. As smart machines become more ubiquitous in our lives, understanding how to connect the comprehension of machines to people in the real world will become more important than ever. 

In this episode of the PAVEcast, we will dive into how Humanising Autonomy is working to bridge the gap between humans and machines. By teaching computers to understand the nuances of human behavior, Humanising Autonomy is hoping to increase the safety, efficiency, and utility of automated machines.

Join us as we talk with Kim Vigilia, vice president of strategy at Humanising Autonomy, for a great discussion about the future of machine learning and comprehension.  

PAVE works closely with member organization National Federation of the Blind to support technologies that could provide new transportation and mobility options for blind people. In this edition of the PAVEcast, we sat down with John Pare, Executive Director for Advocacy and Policy at NFB, on the convention floor of CES in Las Vegas.

In the wide-ranging conversation, John shared the promise that AV technology offers for blind individuals, what some of NFB’s priorities are for 2023, and how partnerships with technology companies and groups like PAVE can help them to reach their goals.

Recent studies have shown that the successful deployment of connected and automated vehicles will largely depend on public opinion. Expectations and concerns are essential components driving the speed of market uptake and final adoption of these technologies. Citizens currently have mixed perceptions of autonomous vehicles (AVs), with excitement about the technology’s potential for improving transportation and reducing accidents, but also concerns about safety, cybersecurity, and job loss. They also envision a future where AVs improve accessibility for those who currently have difficulty using traditional forms of transportation.

Studies suggest that citizens expect AVs to become more prevalent on the roads in the next decade, with a growing number of people considering using AVs for daily commutes. They also expect AVs to be more affordable, more accessible and safer than human-driven vehicles.

In this first PAVE Europe Panel, we will talk to experts from the private and the public sector about how they envisage the current state of AV technology in Europe, and how citizens view the technology and its potential impact on transportation and mobility. The panelists will share their insights and perspectives on the challenges and opportunities for the implementation of AVs in Europe, and how it might impact the society as a whole.

Guests:

• Monica Grosso – Scientific/Technical Support OfficerTransport Economist, European Commission, DG Joint Research Centre
• Arwed Schmidt – Director Strategic Initiatives – Passenger Transportation, Easymile
• Laura Alčiauskaitė – Project Coordinator, European Network on Independent Living (ENIL)

For the past hundred years, automobiles and insurance have been interwoven.  So, as vehicles become increasingly automated,  the insurance industry has to grow and adapt. 

Currently, automotive insurance calculations rely on decades of actuarial data, crash statistics, and legacy methodologies to determine risk and liability. With a new era of AV technology on the horizon, what will insurance look like?

In this episode of the PAVEcast, we chatted with Steve Miller, Innovation Lead with the Insurance Office of America to discuss how the insurance industry is preparing for autonomy. We wanted to know how insurance companies evaluate AVs and what it will look like to provide coverage of a vehicle without a driver.

Listen in for a great conversation about how insurance is adapting to an autonomous future.

PAVE Member Oxbotica - the UK-based global leader in autonomous vehicle software for businesses - is on a mission to make the Earth move better by unlocking the benefits of self-driving technology to every person and organisation on the planet.Together with Australian-based electronic and software technology company, Applied EV, they are accelerating the commercial applications of fully autonomous, zero-occupancy vehicles.

At CES 2023, we were thrilled to sit down with the CEOs of both companies to discuss the year ahead for their organizations and their vision for the partnership. In this PAVEcast, Oxbotica CEO Gavin Jackson and Applied EV CEO Julian Broadbent provided some insight into their joint project: a vehicle that is designed for a wide range of environments and commercial applications, beginning with industrial logistics and goods delivery.

Join host Lukas Neckermann from PAVE Europe for an insightful discussion with these two AV leaders!

PAVE member Gatik is an AV trucking company focused on the “middle-mile,” delivering goods from fulfillment centers to pick-up points such as retail stores and distribution centers. The company has seen significant growth and has announced major partnerships, including with Walmart in the U.S. and Loblaw in Canada.

We wanted to hear more about what’s on the horizon for Gatik, so we sat down with Rich Steiner, Gatik’s Head of Policy and Communication, on the convention floor of CES in Las Vegas. 

In this episode of the PAVEcast, Steiner shared where Gatik is headed in 2023 and their vision for expansion and scaling in the future. He discussed how companies like Gatik fit into supply chain management and shared Gatik’s approach to safety, regulation, inclement weather, and more.

Tune in for this wide-ranging conversation with Gatik at CES!