Waymo has set its robotaxi sights on NYC
Waymo applied for a permit with the New York City Department of Transportation to operate its self-driving Jaguar I-Pace vehicles with a human safety operator behind the wheel in Manhattan. New York's autonomous vehicle demonstration or testing permit requires a human driver to be able to take over; a $5 million insurance policy; and every test vehicle operator must be adequately trained in the safe operation of the test vehicle.
New York law is especially prohibitive of autonomous vehicles. While securing a permit would be notable, Waymo is far from being able to launch commercial operations in the city — or even test without a human safety operator behind the wheel.
Still, Waymo is pressing forward and said it's advocating for a change in state law that would allow for operating a vehicle with no human behind the wheel. The company is also trying to build goodwill in NYC and the state by working with several organizations such as MADD NY, YAI, National Federation of the Blind, and the Bronx Community College.
Waymo told TechCrunch it has had positive conversations with lawmakers this year and hopes to keep making progress on regulatory changes. New York law states that any person operating a motor vehicle must have at least one hand (or prosthetic) on the steering mechanism at all times. Changing that wording will be key to Waymo eventually being able to deploy driverless vehicles.
Other companies have tried to test in NYC before, including Mobileye. But these efforts never materialized beyond a few demonstrations or pilots.
Waymo has eyed the massive market of NYC for years. In 2021, the company deployed its now retired Chrysler Pacifica minivans — the first self-driving vehicles in its testing fleet — to manually drive and map Manhattan. The company said at the time that each vehicle would have two people, one to drive and another in the passenger seat to help direct the activity of the driver, monitor the software on the vehicle in real time, evaluate the performance, and log comments.
Those vehicles were never operated in autonomous mode even though they were all equipped with fifth-generation Waymo Driver, which was its most current and advanced self-driving system at the time.
Over the past four years, Waymo has scaled in numerous other places. The company provides more than 250,000 fully autonomous paid trips each week in several U.S. markets, including Austin, Los Angeles, Phoenix, and San Francisco.
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WIRED
an hour ago
- WIRED
Everything Google Announced Today at Its Pixel Hardware Event
All products featured on WIRED are independently selected by our editors. However, we may receive compensation from retailers and/or from purchases of products through these links. Learn more. Nearly a decade ago, Google announced the first Pixel phone at an event in San Francisco. When Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai took the stage that day, he talked about the mobile-first to AI-first transition. 'I believe computers should adapt to how people live their lives, rather than people having to adapt to computers.' That vision is still playing out on the Pixel phone, which is now in its 10th generation. Google unveiled its Pixel 10 series Android smartphones today at a live event in Brooklyn, New York. You can watch the presentation on Google's YouTube channel. The lineup is comprised of the Pixel 10, Pixel 10 Pro, Pixel 10 Pro XL, and Pixel 10 Pro Fold. The company also debuted the Pixel Watch 4 smartwatch and Pixel Buds 2a wireless earbuds. 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The Verge
an hour ago
- The Verge
Gemini for Home is Google's biggest smart home play in years
It's finally happening: Google Assistant in the home is getting its Gemini glow-up. 'Gemini for Home' is an all-new voice assistant for Google Home, set to arrive later this year, the company announced today. This new voice assistant, powered by Google's Gemini artificial intelligence, will eventually replace Google Assistant on Google's Nest smart speakers and displays for hands-free control of things like smart lights, music, setting timers, and answering questions. Rollout begins in October through an early access program, with both free and paid tiers available. Google says you'll still summon the assistant with 'Hey Google,' and it will work across all your home devices and for every member of your household, as well as visitors. Google's timing here is interesting. While the company has been leading the charge in AI on mobile, bringing a smarter, LLM-powered assistant to phones, it's lagged behind in the home. 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Help me make a delicious meal') to brainstorming how to buy a new car or figuring out how to fix your dishwasher, as well as more creative tasks like generating bedtime stories. If this sounds familiar, it should. These are features Alexa Plus offers, including better smart home control, more help in the kitchen, and fixing household issues. Alexa Plus also has some agentic capabilities — it can use services like Thumbtack and OpenTable for you. With the launch of Gemini for Home, the race is now on for the most reliable and capable smart home voice assistant — and we're still waiting for the third competitor, Apple, to get on the track. Google hasn't announced pricing for the paid tier of Gemini for Home, but Gemini Live, with its more advanced capabilities, is a likely candidate for a premium plan. Amazon has gone the subscription route with Alexa Plus, bundling it into its Prime subscription. Google may follow suit and bundle it into its Nest Aware or Google One plans. It recently increased the price of Nest Aware to $10 a month with no major feature upgrades. It's likely we'll see new Google Nest hardware this fall Although Google says Gemini for Home is coming in October, don't expect it to land everywhere all at once. Google uses its Google Home Public Preview program to test its new features, and has gated access for some Gemini features in the past, only making them available to select users. A cautious rollout is likely, mirroring Amazon's approach with Alexa Plus. Bringing generative AI into the smart home requires extra caution, especially considering there's the potential to control critical devices like locks, appliances, and HVAC systems. All of this, of course, raises an ongoing question for Google Home: Where is the hardware? Aside from the Pixel Tablet, Google hasn't refreshed its smart speakers or displays since 2021. With Gemini for Home being a major upgrade for Google Home, it's likely that new hardware designed to showcase its capabilities will launch alongside it this fall. Posts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. See All by Jennifer Pattison Tuohy Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. See All AI Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. See All Google Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. See All Google Assistant Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. See All News Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. See All Smart Home Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. See All Tech
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Yahoo
FASTPACE.com Launches to Simplify and Accelerate C-PACE Financing Nationwide
New tech-enabled platform provides property owners and developers with fast access to attractive financing for commercial real estate projects CHICAGO, August 20, 2025--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Allectrify, a leader in commercial real estate finance, today announced the launch of a powerful new platform purpose-built to simplify and accelerate access to Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy (C-PACE) financing nationwide. FASTPACE is the first national platform of its kind to unify the entire C-PACE ecosystem, connecting property owners and developers to a growing network of more than 40 capital providers. FASTPACE enables both borrowers and lenders to move projects from initial screening through closing with speed and confidence. "C-PACE financing has long held transformative potential, but the process has remained too slow and fragmented," said Allectrify CEO Colin Bishopp, who unveiled the platform at a gathering of C-PACE program administrators in Chicago. "FASTPACE changes that. It brings speed, standardization, and efficiency to every deal so that more projects can move forward, faster." At the center of the experience is a digital interface that allows users to instantly verify property eligibility, generate a quick financing quote, and access tools to obtain senior lender consent – all at no cost. enables financing of up to 100% of eligible hard and soft costs, with terms up to 30 years and fixed- or adjustable-rate options. Project types include new construction, complex renovations, simple building upgrades, and recapitalization of completed work. FASTPACE is the only C-PACE platform optimized for projects of all sizes, with a focus on serving the middle-market sector. The platform's streamlined process enables closings in as little as 23 days – especially for projects under $10 million. During its pilot phase, FASTPACE was used to finance projects across the country, including solar installations, HVAC upgrades, adaptive reuse, and ground-up new construction. Early adopters have praised its speed, flexibility, and user experience. "We closed our C-PACE financing on the FASTPACE platform less than four weeks from term sheet execution," said Erin Tolbert, a developer who secured $1.6 million in financing for a hospitality asset. "FASTPACE made the process seamless from start to finish." To learn more or obtain a quick quote on a project, visit About FASTPACE FASTPACE is transforming how commercial real estate projects get financed – making it faster and easier for property owners, developers, contractors, and lenders to access the power of C-PACE financing. From initial screening through closing and from portfolio management through payoff, FASTPACE streamlines every step of the process – reducing transaction costs, accelerating timelines, and expanding access to long-term, low-cost capital. Backed by a network of more than 40 capital providers, FASTPACE operates a full-service, tech-enabled C-PACE lending platform. Learn more at View source version on Contacts Media Contact greg@
