Waymo did not mention that at the time, but it did not forget about the mistake. With more scrutiny about how Tesla tests its beta software, it said that “good hardware leads to better data and faster processing, enabling smarter software.” That’s a direct punch at Tesla’s decision to solely use cameras to make its cars autonomous.
Musk and Tesla repeatedly said their cars already had all the hardware they would need to drive by themselves. Yet, they kept developing new hardware to finally deliver on their promises. That has not happened so far.
A little further ahead, Waymo states that it is leveraging its custom-built sensors to help WaymoDriver “reason about the world, so it doesn’t accidentally classify say the moon for a traffic light.” Ouch...
Apart from the danger these rogue Tesla cars on the roads may represent to people with the bad luck to be around them, Waymo must also be concerned with the implications Tesla’s approach may have to everyone trying to seriously and safely develop autonomous driving.
If the governments decide that companies are pushing it too far in terms of traffic safety, they may impose more restrictions to make developing the tech more expensive, more complex, or both.
Safety experts have been asking NHTSA to stop Tesla from deploying beta software to untrained drivers to test it. Missy Cummings even received death threats after she was nominated a senior safety adviser to the safety agency. Waymo decided to try to revert the situation with humor. That’s certainly worth trying. If it doesn’t work, at least we got a good laugh with the subtle and demolishing jabbing.
Good hardware leads to better data and faster processing, enabling smarter software.
— Waymo (@Waymo) October 28, 2021
See how we're leveraging our custom-built sensors to help the #WaymoDriver reason about the world so it doesn’t accidentally classify say the moon for a traffic light. https://t.co/CjBJ7kQnT3 pic.twitter.com/F5FynEDIDu
Hey @elonmusk you might want to have your team look into the moon tricking the autopilot system. The car thinks the moon is a yellow traffic light and wanted to keep slowing down. ???????? @Teslarati @teslaownersSV @TeslaJoy pic.twitter.com/6iPEsLAudD
— Jordan (@JordanTeslaTech) July 23, 2021
Happened to me too… see below…. pic.twitter.com/YzezB30CWa
— Certain (@MatthewCertain) July 23, 2021