Uber released new footage and some images of its self-driving trucks, which reveal an updated look with some powerful new sensors. The sensors are now embedded in the truck’s exterior, creating a more seamless look. The addition of a new, spinning 64-channel LIDAR laser sensor on the roof indicates the trucks are operating on a more sophisticated autonomous system than the previous models.
And most notably, Uber has removed all the Otto branding from the trucks, confirming earlier reports that Uber had quietly dropped the name after a trademark dispute with a similarly named Canadian company that makes autonomous vehicles for warehouses and industrial facilities.
Uber has removed all the Otto branding from the trucks
Otto has been a bit of an albatross around the neck of the ride-hailing company since Waymo, a subsidiary of Alphabet, accused one of Uber’s executives of stealing its self-driving vehicle designs before leaving Google to start the self-driving truck startup. (Uber subsequently acquired Otto for $680 million, which Waymo claims was premised on the executive, Anthony Levandowski, stealing Google’s documents.)
In an interview with TechCrunch, Uber’s product lead for its trucking division, Alden Woodrow, said the tech refresh was not made as a result of the ongoing litigation between Uber and Waymo. He also said that the LIDAR used in the new design was an off-the-shelf device, rather than developed in-house at Uber’s Advance Technology Group.