Cherish your Uber drivers. Soon they will be robots
The robotaxi revolution is upon us
This column was not written by ChatGPT. But it did have the benefit of another breathtaking technology that could change life as we know it. It was partly typed in the back of a Waymo self-driving taxi that, with ghostly serenity, climbed the hills of San Francisco, through the fog of Twin Peaks (it was still “Fogust”), around the spaced-out hippies of Haight-Ashbury to the Golden Gate Bridge. Rather than driving into wet concrete, as one of its hapless rivals did recently, it politely gave way to a cement mixer that swerved across its path. It was a scenic—and entirely trustworthy—office-on-wheels.
This article appeared in the Business section of the print edition under the headline “No one behind the wheel ”
Business September 2nd 2023
- Amazon has Hollywood’s worst shows but its best business model
- From social-media stars to the Mexican army, everyone wants to run an airline
- America’s plan to cut drug prices comes with unpleasant side-effects
- India’s scandal-hit Adani Group forges on
- The rise of the Asian activist investor
- The best bosses know how to subtract work
- Cherish your Uber drivers. Soon they will be robots
More from Business
Alcohol-free booze is becoming big business
But will it ever be as good?
A new electricity supercycle is under way
Why spending on power infrastructure is surging around the world
MAGA’s war on talent frightens CEOs—and angers Elon Musk
American businesses’ ability to tap the world’s human capital is under threat
Beware the dangers of data
Numbers have an authority that disguises their flaws
Meet Silicon Valley’s shrewdest talent spotters
An elite group of early-stage investors make supersized returns
Netflix has big ambitions for live sport
Christmas NFL games are just the start