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AI AND ML
15 Mustangs on the city streets, but the Nissan LEAF follow-up could dispense with the safety driver
Wayve and Uber have launched self-driving rides in London, but what's more interesting is what is planned for the next few months and years.
As of today, the plan is for 15 electric Ford Mustangs, equipped with the Wayve AI driver, to roam the capital, picking up passengers with a safety driver on hand to keep an eye on things.
However, at a launch event on Thursday, Wayve showed off the follow-up to the Mustang: a Nissan LEAF, which will run the Wayve AI Driver using NVIDIA DRIVE Hyperion. This glimpse into the future was arguably more intriguing than today's electric Mustang.
Unlike the Mustang, the LEAF's self-driving equipment looked as though it might have been part of the car's design, from a roof-mounted sensor pack that followed the roofline, through to sensors attached to the wings and bumpers.
A Wayve representative told us it had worked with Nissan on the integration. That said, the tech is relatively agnostic when it comes to platforms and sensor configurations.
Wayve was, however, a little less forthcoming at the launch event about the underlying technology changes between the Nissan-based prototype on show and the Mustang parked up in front of it. The hope is that the update will reach UK roads next year, although that depends on several factors, including technology and regulations. Right now, Uber stated, "The initial launch phase features supervised autonomous rides, meaning a trained and TfL licensed private hire driver is onboard to oversee the trip."
So no San Francisco Waymo-esque rides with the driver's seat spookily empty just yet. However, a Wayve representative told us the Nissan LEAF would eventually be capable of such a feat.
The rollout of the Mustang feels a little like a stunt to steal a march on competitors such as Waymo, which has also had vehicles rolling around the tricky streets and traffic of London. Waymo is presently in a testing phase, but Wayve and Uber are now taking paying passengers. Both services, however, must have a trained driver onboard, poised to intervene if the need arises.
A Ford Mustang used in Wayve and Uber’s supervised self-driving trials. Pic: Wayve/Uber
The untried nature of the Wayve and Uber Mustang is evidenced by the words "TEST VEHICLE. KEEP A SAFE DISTANCE" printed on the rear of the car. Paying passengers are part of the AI Driver's learning process, with lessons learned feeding into the next generation of autonomous vehicles, which might, or might not, still need that safety driver behind the wheel, just in case.
Wayve was founded in 2017 and is headquartered in London. It has trained its AI tech on the city's roads since 2018. In 2024, Wayve partnered with Uber, which included an investment to deploy vehicles with Wayve's technology in 12 markets worldwide, starting with London. The LEAF will first see action in Tokyo. ®
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