AutoX will be joining Cruise and Waymo testing self-driving taxis in San Francisco, using an SAE Level 5 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid as their first test vehicle.
An operations center will be established in the area to collect road information and maintain an autonomous car fleet. Test operators will sit in the driver’s seat with no steering wheel or pedals available, and will use a trip computer to guide the car in emergencies instead.
AutoX claims it has already received a driverless test permit from the authorities of San Jose, California, where it launched its first autonomous car in 2016. However, San Jose remains the only city where such a permission has been granted so far, and it is only valid for SAE Level 3 autonomous cars at the time.
The company says its test operators have only covered around 50,000 miles (80,000 kilometers) so far and doesn’t mention any driver-free test attempts. Its California fleet consists of 44 vehicles, out of which only 6 were actively used for the tests. The startup blames Covid-related restrictions for all test schedule disruptions.