AV Life After Argo AI

Every new industry sector goes through a consolidation process where the strongest survive, and so it is with automated and autonomous driving technologies.

The recent shuttering of Argo AI, one of the autonomous-vehicle industry's leading tech companies, by Ford and Volkswagen might come as a surprise to commuters in San Francisco and in Phoenix, Arizona. Those who regularly use the robotaxi services of GM-backed Cruise Automation and Alphabet's Waymo see these and other AVs under development during their daily travels. On public roads. Every day.

Indeed, Argo AI's demise (which insiders said was mainly due to friction among Ford and VW) and difficulties at other startups including AV pioneer Aurora, have highlighted the engineering challenges of safely achieving SAE Level 4 driving automation, while reinforcing AV critics. But as Guidehouse Insights' leading e-Mobility analyst Sam Abuelsamid notes in his Navigator column on page 3, the AV sector's leaders appear to be moving out ahead of the pack. Cruise has expanded its robotaxi service into Austin, Texas, with operations in more cities planned in 2023. The company's CEO Kyle Vogt claims Cruise will reach $1B in revenue by 2025. GM CEO Mary Barra is a believer.