The self-driving car industry just acknowledged it has an image problem

Partners for Automated Vehicle Education, or PAVE, which was unveiled Monday at the CES technology trade show in Las Vegas, includes carmakers Audi, General Motors, Volkswagen, Toyota and Daimler; driverless technology companies Waymo, Cruise, Aurora and Zoox; and computer chip makers Intel, Nvidia and Mobileye.

The group said it will “seek to bring realistic, factual information to policymakers and the public so consumers and decision-makers understand the technology, its current state and its future potential — including the benefits in safety, mobility and sustainability.”

Critics point out that many of PAVE’s members have a stake in the driverless future. They are skeptical that the group will be objective.

“A corporate coalition of technology profiteers claiming to focus on safety is akin to the tobacco companies telling us they have a safer way to deliver nicotine,” said Jack Gillis, executive director of the Consumer Federation of America. read more »

Australian court orders Volkswagen to name those who knew about diesel emissions

A Federal Court judge presiding over the Australian "dieselgate'' class action against Volkswagen has ordered the company to name which board members and those in senior management knew that their diesel-engine cars were fitted with software designed to cheat on a test that measured exhaust emissions. read more »