Google's Waymo successfully takes blind man around Texas

Google has announced a big change to its self-driving car plans. The tech giant is spinning off its R&D in autonomous technology into a new sub-company called Waymo.
The innovation with Waymo is not Google's vehicle but something bigger and more revolutionary.
Instead of producing its own car, the Google spinoff will partner with manufacturers and sell on its technology to third parties.
Basically, it will build the infrastructure to one day enable the average person to use autonomous cars in everyday life.
So, in this rapidly advancing industry, where do Korean companies, local technology stand?
Here's Lee Jiwon.
The world has gotten a step closer to having driverless cars out on the streets,... as more companies are successfully testing their autonomous cars,... including Google's Waymo.
Waymo, the self-driving car unit under Google's parent company Alphabet, announced that a blind man named Steve Mahan has successfully traveled around Texas, in its autonomous car.
The achievement is even more significant in that the vehicle lacked not only a secondary passenger capable of assisting Mahan, but also a steering wheel and pedals.
Driving more than 2 million miles on public roads to test its vehicles,... Google's Waymo spent the past six months scrutinizing the vehicle's performance before the actual test.
The car had a backup computer and control systems,... but Mahan, the first non-Google employee to ride alone in the car, and who is legally blind, said it was like being in the car with a very good driver.

"The cars are comfortable, they drive well, they feel good on the road and they're cute."

With this feat, experts say the competition among automakers will just intensify.
And although Korean brands are developing their own autonomous cars as well, experts say they are still behind other global companies like Waymo.

"Korean autonomous cars still lack in technology regarding sensor efficacy or safety. For example, most of the cars can keep their driving distance when driving straight. But when the cars need to turn corners or when they are driving at high speeds,... some of them cannot keep their distance or stay on the lanes."

The expert added,...that in order for Korea to further grow in the industry, the government needs to relax its policies regarding driverless cars while firms need to invest more in research and development, especially in the areas related to software and sensor development. Lee Ji-won, Arirang News.

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