Senator calls for federal oversight of remote helpers for autonomous vehicles
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Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) is urging federal safety officials to investigate the remote assistance practices of autonomous vehicle companies, accusing them of "a stunning lack of transparency."
Why it matters: Robotaxis and self-driving trucks are beginning to roll out across America, typically with a small army of human overseers working remotely behind the scenes to help them navigate complex scenarios.
- Markey's concern is that these remote agents — some of whom are located overseas — could cause serious safety, national security and privacy risks.
Catch up quick: The senator sent a letter to major AV companies on Feb. 3, demanding answers about the safety of their remote assistance operator systems.
- A day later, at a Senate committee hearing, he grilled industry officials, including Waymo's chief safety officer, Mauricio Peña, who revealed that some of Waymo's remote assistants are located in the Philippines.
The latest: Seven AV companies responded to Markey's written inquiry, including Waymo, Tesla, Zoox, Aurora, Motional, May Mobility and Nuro.
- Their responses exposed a patchwork of safety practices across the industry, Markey said Tuesday, with significant variations in operator qualifications, response times and overseas staffing.
Zoom in: None of the companies disclosed how frequently remote assistants intervene to help their AVs, he said.
- Network delays varied across companies, indicating that operators are making their own determinations about the latency threshold that constitutes a safety risk.
Waymo, the leading robotaxi provider, is the only AV company that uses overseas remote operators, the responses showed.
- The company said it has approximately 70 remote assistance agents on duty worldwide at any given time overseeing some 3,000 robotaxis.
- These agents provide advice and support to the Waymo Driver but do not directly control the vehicle, it noted, information it has also published on its blog.
- About half of its agents are located in the U.S., in Arizona and Michigan, and the other half are based in the Philippines.
- The U.S.-based agents include a specially trained Emergency Response Team (ERT), whose job is to respond to collisions, interact with law enforcement and coordinate towing when necessary.
What they're saying: "Senator Markey's findings demonstrate the critical need for a federal policy framework on autonomous vehicles," Jeff Farrah, CEO of the Autonomous Vehicle Industry Association, said.
- "The autonomous vehicle industry looks forward to engaging with him and other members of the Senate to write common sense federal policy that promotes safer roads, more accessible vehicles, and resilient supply chains," he said.
What's next: As a result of his findings, Markey is asking the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to investigate the industry's remote assistance practices.
- Markey also says he is working on legislation "to impose strong, enforceable regulations" around the use of remote assistants.
Editor's note: This article was updated with a comment from Jeff Farrah, CEO of the Autonomous Vehicle Industry Association.
