> First we have tesla which already has a self driving car. They were the first to build one and now everyone is playing catch up, or are they?
They have a Level 2 system, which is certainly an impressive technical achievement, but not what most of us are thinking of when we think, "self driving." They are hoping to grow it into something more, but it remains to be see whether that will be possible. Other companies also have Level 2 systems, and, while I've personally never used any of them, some sources do report that Autopilot is not the best one out there, just the most hyped one. So, even if we are just focusing on assisted driving rather than self driving, I'm not sure one can say with too much confidence that they are the clear leader.
I would not interpret the existence of a functional consumer product as evidence of a technical lead in the race toward true self driving. Waymo never had any intention of commercially releasing a level 2 system. Their plan was to go straight to level 4 without any detours. Reports would seem to indicate that they are far, far ahead of everyone else on achieving that goal. It may be that they now have an unbeatable lead. Or it may be that some more direct competitor catches up. Or it may be that a company like Tesla or Cadillac is able to use profits and data collected from their commercial level 2 systems to accelerate their development and catch up. This, too, remains to be seen.
They have a Level 2 system, which is certainly an impressive technical achievement, but not what most of us are thinking of when we think, "self driving." They are hoping to grow it into something more, but it remains to be see whether that will be possible. Other companies also have Level 2 systems, and, while I've personally never used any of them, some sources do report that Autopilot is not the best one out there, just the most hyped one. So, even if we are just focusing on assisted driving rather than self driving, I'm not sure one can say with too much confidence that they are the clear leader.
I would not interpret the existence of a functional consumer product as evidence of a technical lead in the race toward true self driving. Waymo never had any intention of commercially releasing a level 2 system. Their plan was to go straight to level 4 without any detours. Reports would seem to indicate that they are far, far ahead of everyone else on achieving that goal. It may be that they now have an unbeatable lead. Or it may be that some more direct competitor catches up. Or it may be that a company like Tesla or Cadillac is able to use profits and data collected from their commercial level 2 systems to accelerate their development and catch up. This, too, remains to be seen.