GM’s Cruise division, which focuses on autonomous vehicles (AVs), is facing a series of challenges that are raising concerns about the safety and effectiveness of its technology. Recently, the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) suspended Cruise’s driverless permits due to safety issues. This suspension has highlighted other problems with the company, including its AVs’ inability to effectively recognize children and the high frequency of human operators having to take control of the vehicles remotely. In addition to these issues, Cruise has also announced the temporary suspension of production for its fully autonomous Origin transport.
One of the most concerning issues is the company’s failure to adequately address the problem of its AVs recognizing children. According to internal safety assessment materials obtained by The Intercept, Cruise’s AVs may have been unable to detect children effectively and take appropriate precautions. The company acknowledged that its vehicles sometimes lost track of children during simulation testing, but claimed to have fixed the issue without providing specific details about the actions taken. Cruise emphasized that there have been no on-road collisions involving children and stated that the risk of such collisions occurring is relatively low, with an occurrence rate of once every 300 million miles at fleet driving.
Another problem highlighted in the reports is the AVs’ difficulty in detecting large holes in the road, such as construction site pits with workers inside. This issue poses a significant risk, as GM’s own documents suggest that a vehicle is likely to drive into a hole at least once a year and into a pit with people inside once every four years. The Intercept reviewed video footage showing an AV driving dangerously close to a pit despite the presence of construction cones. The vehicle only stopped when a worker waved a “slow” sign in front of it. Cruise claimed to have made improvements in detecting potential hazards around construction zones but did not provide specific details.
The presence of these issues raises serious concerns about Cruise’s ability to operate its vehicles safely on public roads. The inability to effectively recognize children, combined with the AVs’ limited autonomy and the frequent need for human assistance, suggests that the technology is not yet ready for widespread deployment. Phil Koopman, an engineering professor at Carnegie Mellon University, expressed skepticism about Cruise’s safety claims, stating that if the technology cannot detect children, it is difficult to consider it low risk.
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Furthermore, recent revelations have called into question the level of autonomy in Cruise’s AVs. According to a report in The New York Times and confirmed by Cruise CEO Kyle Vogt, the robotaxis require human assistance every four to five miles of operation in complex urban environments. This means that a human operator needs to intervene multiple times on many trips. Cruise stated that there is typically one remote assistant for every 15 to 20 driverless AVs. While Cruise clarified that the remote assistants provide wayfinding intel to the AVs rather than controlling them remotely, the reliance on human assistance raises doubts about the level of autonomy the vehicles actually possess.
As a result of these issues and concerns, Cruise has decided to halt production of its Origin autonomous vehicle. This decision comes after the California DMV suspended Cruise’s license. Vogt explained in an all-hands meeting with employees that the decision to pause production was made due to the uncertain regulatory landscape. Cruise is still operating its AVs in California but must have a human backup driver in the vehicle. The DMV has provided Cruise with a path to reinstate its suspended permits but will only approve them once the company has fulfilled all the requirements to the department’s satisfaction.
In conclusion, GM’s Cruise division is facing numerous challenges that cast doubt on the safety, effectiveness, and level of autonomy of its autonomous vehicles. The company has been suspended from operating driverless vehicles in California due to safety concerns. Reports have also highlighted issues with child recognition capabilities and the high reliance on human assistance during operation. Additionally, Cruise has temporarily suspended production of its fully autonomous Origin vehicle. These challenges raise significant questions about the readiness of Cruise’s technology for deployment on public roads and the company’s ability to address critical safety issues.
