Drivers too distracted to take over from 'autopilot' mode, Google finds

Alphabet Inc'sself-driving car unit stopped developing features that requireddrivers to take control in dangerous situations, its chiefexecutive said Monday, as autopilot reliance left users prone todistractions and ill-prepared to manoeuver.

The decision followed experiments of the technology inSilicon Valley that showed test users napping, putting on makeupand fiddling with their phones as the vehicles traveled up to 90 kilometres per hour (56mph).

What we found was pretty scary.- John Krafcik, Waymo

John Krafcik, the head of Waymo, which was formed in 2009 asa project within Alphabet's Google unit, told reporters thatabout five years ago the company envisioned technology thatcould autonomously drive cars on highways as a quick way to geton the market.

Other self-driving automakers include similar autopilotfeatures for highway-driving in vehicles, but they require
drivers to take over the steering wheel in tricky situations.

Waymo planned to do the same.

"What we found was pretty scary," Krafcik said onMondayduring a media tour of a Waymo testing facility. "It's hard to
take over because they have lost contextual awareness."

Krafcik said the company determined a system that askeddrivers to jump in at the sound of an alert was unsafe after
seeing videos from inside self-driving cars during tests.

Filmed tests

The filmed tests were conducted in 2013, with Googleemployees behind the wheel. The videos had not been publicly
shown until Monday's event, Waymo spokeswoman Lauren Barrieresaid.

The company decided to focus solely on technology thatdidn't require human intervention a couple of days after the
napping incident, said Krafcik, who joined as CEO in 2015. Ithas also since argued against allowing "handoffs" between
automated driving systems and people.

"Our technology takes care of all of the driving, allowingpassengers to stay passengers," the company said in report thismonth.

The two drive controls provided to passengers in Waymo'sChrysler Pacifica minivans are buttons for starting a ride and
asking the vehicles to pull over at their next chance.

Ride-hailing pilot

Waymo is running a ride-hailing pilot program aroundPhoenix, Arizona that chauffeurs an undisclosed, but growing
number of users in self-driving cars. The service area islimited to well-mapped roads on which Waymo has extensively
tested.

Krafcik declined to specify when the company would expandbeyond the small experiment, saying only that such a moment isgetting "close."

He reiterated that the company is simultaneously alsoidentifying ways to launch self-driving trucks, municipal
transit services and partnerships with carmakers.

"We see four potential applications, whether it's Waymobranded or not," he said.

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