Photo: Courtesy of Uber.Your next Uber ride might be guided by a real nobody, folks. Travis Kalanick, the company's CEO, said at the re/code conference in Los Angeles, "Uber Technologies Inc. envisions the future of its ride-sharing service as one without human drivers."
Kalanick explained that a fleet of technology-driven vehicles is being developed. The reasoning behind the man-versus-machines move isn't to cut jobs (though Kalanick will likely have to dodge a few questions about that very topic in the coming months), he says it's to make the service more accessible. Right now, costs of using Uber are high because a passenger is paying for the service and the driver. "When there's no other dude in the car," Kalanick explained, "the cost of taking an Uber anywhere becomes cheaper than owning a vehicle." Let's be real here: Who really wants to own a car with gas prices as high as they are now? Nobody.
The launch of the new fleet is in the distant future. But, Kalanick is adament that these changes are inevitable, and not just for the dudes who use his app. Just look at Google's driverless, gondola-lookin' car — and what has that company ever invented that we didn't all immediately assimilate into our everyday? (San Francisco Business Times)