In autonomous and self-driving vehicle news are In this Article PlusAI Advances Commercial Readiness Metrics Ahead of 2027 Autonomous Truck Scale Dallas Pedestrian Dies in Secondary Impact With Autonomous Waymo Vehicle Waymo Secures CPUC Authorization for Robotaxi Commercial Expansion Across 18 California Counties The California Public Utilities Commission has approved Waymo’s Advice Letter No. 4, authorizing commercial driverless ride-hailing services across 18 Northern and Southern California counties. The permit clears operational expansion across the San Francisco Bay Area and Greater Los Angeles while opening market entries into Sacramento and San Diego. The geographic footprint encompasses 12 Northern California counties including Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, Sacramento, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Solano, Sonoma, and Yolo, alongside six Southern California counties comprising Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego, and Ventura. The regulatory clearance covers vehicle operation across all road classifications—including highways, urban arterials, rural corridors, rail crossings, and surface lots—in daytime, nighttime, rain, fog, and hail conditions. Operations encompass both the Jaguar I-Pace fleet and the custom purpose-built Ojai vehicle architecture powered by Waymo’s sixth-generation Driver system. Commercial rollout across the permitted counties will proceed incrementally under the operator’s phased safety protocols. Witherite Law Group Challenges AV Operational Readiness During Emergency Responses and High-Speed Pursuits Uber Japan and Hinomaru Kotsu Partner for Tokyo Robotaxi Pilot Uber Japan has signed an operational partnership agreement with Tokyo taxi operator Hinomaru Kotsu to manage fleet operations for an autonomous vehicle pilot deployment scheduled to launch in late 2026. Hinomaru Kotsu will oversee depot management, vehicle maintenance, charging infrastructure, and uptime logistics, while Uber integrates ride-hailing demand matching through its global platform. The deployment utilizes Nissan LEAF electric vehicles equipped with Wayve AI Driver technology under a prior March 2026 memorandum of understanding between Uber, Wayve, and Nissan Motor. To