Autonomous cars – vehicles that drive themselves – can sound like either the future of transport or an utterly terrifying prospect.
For me, they’ve always felt more ‘science fiction’ than ‘London taxi’. But now that future has arrived on the capital’s streets – and I’m about to find out what it’s really like.
Uber and artificial intelligence firm Wayve have today launched ‘driverless’ rides in London, marking the first time the service has been available in the UK.
I say ‘driverless’ because, for now, a supervisor remains behind the wheel for safety reasons, with their hands hovering close by.
I climb into one of the much-talked-about cars – already used for testing and private trips around the city – and set off through central London.
And initially, it feels remarkably… normal.
Booking one is simple. You request an UberX, Uber Electric or Uber Comfort and can opt to be matched with a Wayve car at no extra cost, with the fare shown upfront in the app.
So far, so Uber. Except this time, there’s a robot doing the steering.
Is an autonomous vehicle the transport of the future? Erin takes a look inside
Once seated in the car, you can adjust the temperature and seat
Riders – like myself – matched with a Wayve ride will travel in an all-electric Ford Mustang Mach-E vehicle equipped with the Wayve AI Driver, as well as surround sensors.
The in-vehicle experience, designed by Uber, features interactive screens available in 64 languages where riders can start their trip and view the vehicle’s planned path.
My car pulls up to collect me and, aside from a couple of add-ons (notably the camera bar on top of the car and Wayve markers on the side), looks like any ordinary car.
But the robo-taxi element kicks in once it comes to a halt.
To unlock the doors, you need to press a button in the app.
It’s the driving itself that is most bizarre.
Knowing that the steering wheel will move on its own is not enough to prepare you for seeing it in the flesh.
It’s totally unsettling at first – and then inexplicably cool. I felt like I was in a sci-fi movie.
While drivers are currently still in the vehicle for safety reasons, they do very little, other than a quick safety briefing, and I can envisage the joys of hopping into a taxi with no pressure to make conversation.
A few minutes into our drive, which has thus far been an exercise in child-like wonder given the spinning steering wheel, I’m struck by how few passers-by are looking at the car.
Don’t they realise how groundbreaking this is?
The vehicles are identifiable by the overhead camera panel
The steering wheel moves by itself – and for now, a supervising driver is in place to monitor the journey
The truth is, part of the success of the vehicles is exactly this – they function just like an ordinary car, down to the braking and accelerating, speed and general smoothness of drive.
In all honesty, it’s one of the smoother rides I’ve had through the nation’s capital, known for its stop-start traffic and often jerky taxi rides.
It’s even better than being driven around by some of my friends and family – you’re not relying on someone’s skill with navigating tough routes and gear changes (sorry, mum!).
You can also adjust the temperature inside the car – I favour cooler rides, so I turn it down a couple of degrees – as well as the music.
I’m told that soon you’ll be able to do so directly from the app or by voice, without even having to fiddle with buttons inside the car.
When our drive comes to an end, it pulls over seamlessly into a parking spot – and nestles in perfectly without any of the manoeuvring and faff I associate with parking when forced to do so myself.
A real feat for what I consider to be robo-engineering mixed with a spot of witchcraft and wizardry.
It’s not the end of the road for developments in the field, either.
Uber and artificial intelligence firm Wayve have launched the cars today
The question on my lips is, of course, when will the cars be totally driverless?
Kaity Fischer, Wayve’s vice president of commercial and operations in London, tells me it’s not yet confirmed – the safety trial phase currently in operation needs to undergo rigorous development and testing first.
Headquartered and founded in London, Wayve has built and specifically trained its AI technology on the capital’s roads since 2018.
Wayve’s approach uses an AI model that learns from experience, much like a human, allowing it to scale and adapt to complex environments without relying on traditional HD maps or hand-coded rules.
This launch is part of Uber and Wayve’s partnership, which included an investment to put Wayve-powered vehicles on the Uber network in 12 markets around the world, beginning with London.
As part of the future service in London and other global markets, Wayve and Uber will also introduce riders to the Nissan LEAF vehicle, powered by the Wayve AI Driver using NVIDIA DRIVE Hyperion, starting in Tokyo later this year.
‘We’re proud to introduce the Wayve AI Driver to the public for the first time right here in London, our home city and one of the most complex driving environments in the world,’ said Alex Kendall, CEO and Co-founder of Wayve.
For now, the car model used is an all-electric Ford Mustang Mach-E vehicle
‘Autonomous driving technology will complement the city’s rich transport network, and we’re excited for Londoners to experience it first as we begin our global rollout with Uber.’
Sarfraz Maredia, global head of autonomous mobility at Uber, added: ‘London is a world-class hub for transportation innovation and this launch is a major milestone in scaling safe, accessible AV technology in a city with some of the world’s most complex roads.’
London being first is important and my ride, I reflect, is a success.
It’s unsettling at first. But after a moment getting used to the steering wheel moving of its own accord, it becomes just as ordinary as any other taxi ride.
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