\t\t\t\t\tWaymo\u2019s Ojai vehicle<\/span><\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCourtesy of Waymo<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n \n\tThe all-electric Ojai, which began carrying select public riders this year, is Waymo\u2019s first vehicle designed specifically for autonomous ride-hailing rather than adapted from an existing passenger car. Built by Chinese EV manufacturer Zeekr and outfitted with Waymo\u2019s technology in Mesa, Arizona, it resembles a compact passenger van.<\/p>\n \n\tIts elevator-like sliding doors open onto a low step, wide entrance and completely flat floor. The current configuration accommodates up to four passengers \u2014 one in the front passenger seat and three across the rear \u2014 while embedded braille, screen-reader compatibility and a seat-integrated support handle address accessibility.<\/p>\n \n\tStewart is unsparing about the alternative. A New York yellow cab, she says, puts passengers in a crowded back seat behind a glass barrier with few amenities. \u201cIt\u2019s a pretty horrible experience,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n \n\tOjai, by comparison, has doors that slide open at the touch of a finger, unobstructed space and screens within easy view of its passengers. \u201cThere\u2019s legroom. It\u2019s comfortable,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n \n\tShe also sees the cabin as productive space. \u201cAny car is my office,\u201d Stewart says. Although she generally prefers the front passenger seat, Ojai\u2019s rear cabin may convert her. <\/p>\n \n\tWith no human driver, \u201cyou\u2019ve got this space really all to yourself,\u201d says Jackie Hyun, Waymo\u2019s head of marketing.<\/p>\n \n\tOne screen sits in front and two are positioned in the rear. Their displays adapt to occupied seats, giving the nearest rider full control while unused screens show trip status or ambient imagery. Riders can start the trip, reposition the passenger seats and set the temperature through a screen or the Waymo app. Calm Mode dims the displays and reduces the information shown.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\tThe inside of Waymo\u2019s Ojai vehicle.<\/span><\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCourtesy of Waymo<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n \n\tA linked Spotify account can follow a rider into the vehicle, and YouTube Music is also integrated. Hyun says Ojai\u2019s trunk, additional legroom and \u201cparty space\u201d make it particularly suited to airport trips and small groups.<\/p>\n \n\tThat proposition is especially relevant in Los Angeles, where hours spent crossing the city can become part of the working day. Waymo has said local riders already use driverless trips to take meetings, film social content or work between appointments. Ojai pushes that behavior further, functioning as a private mobile office or green room in a city where transportation and entertainment are intertwined.<\/p>\n \n\tWaymo has also been methodically placing itself within entertainment culture. Its Spotify integration was promoted through a campaign with Saweetie, while singer-songwriter Julia Michaels performed \u201cNo Heartbreak\u2019s Killed Me Yet\u201d from the back seat of a Waymo to introduce YouTube Music. Waymo vehicles have appeared in music videos from Kesha and KATSEYE, while custom-wrapped cars have promoted artists including Sabrina Carpenter and BLACKPINK. In hospitality and sports, it just announced partnerships with Las Vegas\u2019 Allegiant Stadium and The Venetian Resort.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\tWaymo recently sponsored the New York premiere of Supergirl<\/em>.<\/span><\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tJamie McCarthy\/Getty Images<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n \n\tStewart extends that strategy beyond pop music. She gives an unfamiliar machine the imprimatur of one of America\u2019s most recognizable authorities on domestic life, helping Waymo position Ojai not simply as a robotaxi but as an aspirational personal space.<\/p>\n \n\tTwo distinct AI systems are at work inside it. The sixth-generation Waymo Driver is the purpose-built autonomous-driving AI. Its 13 cameras, four lidar units, six radar units and onboard computing perceive the road and perform the entire driving task. The sensors provide overlapping fields of view extending as far as one third of a mile, with heaters, wipers and cleaning systems designed to keep them functioning through undesirable road conditions, including snow and grime.<\/p>\n \n\tThat cold-weather capability is central to Waymo\u2019s national expansion plans, as is the reduced number of sensors compared with its fifth-generation system. Waymo says the newer system costs less while delivering greater resolution, range and computing power.<\/p>\n \n\tGemini is an optional conversational AI assistant for passengers. It can answer general questions, provide information about the trip and nearby locations, adjust cabin controls or request that the vehicle pull over. It operates separately from the Waymo Driver: Gemini cannot steer, alter the route or access the Driver\u2019s real-time driving data.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\tAnother look at the inside of Waymo\u2019s Ojai vehicle.<\/span><\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCourtesy of Waymo<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n \n\tWhile it might seem like a paradigm shift for Stewart \u2014 whose brand is associated with hospitality, entertaining and gracious living \u2014 to embrace AI, she says it\u2019s nothing of the sort.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cThis is the future. I\u2019m all about the future. I don\u2019t live in the past,\u201d Stewart says. Her interest began with the science fiction she read and watched during the 1960s. \u201cYou dream about it. You see the possibilities, and now the possibilities are a reality.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tStewart, 85, co-founded Hint, an AI-powered home-management app, and says she regularly uses both Gemini and Anthropic\u2019s Claude. Asked whether AI threatens the human touch at the center of her work, she says it is \u201cextremely useful\u201d and improving daily.<\/p>\n \n\tOnce AI hits the streets, consumer unease over crashes, surveillance and threats to livelihoods builds.<\/p>\n \n\tPressed on whether there was anything she would not trust Waymo or AI to do, Stewart answers, \u201cNo, not at all.\u201d She says she felt no hesitation during her first driverless ride in Los Angeles. \u201cNothing,\u201d she says. \u201cI just hoped that all the cameras were working.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tThose cameras create concerns of their own as law enforcement agencies seek footage recorded by Waymo vehicles. The company says its cameras are intended for mapping, safety and improving the technology rather than facial recognition or biometric identification. It requires valid legal authority before releasing information and says it may challenge requests it considers overly broad or unenforceable.<\/p>\n \n\tInside Ojai, Waymo says Gemini does not retain riders\u2019 audio, though it may keep written transcripts to evaluate and improve the assistant.<\/p>\n \n\tSafety also remains under examination. The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating multiple incidents in which Waymo vehicles passed stopped school buses in Austin, Texas. In December, Waymo recalled and updated the software in 3,067 vehicles equipped with its fifth-generation autonomous-driving system.<\/p>\n \n\tWaymo\u2019s own analysis compares its autonomous-driving performance with human-driver benchmarks over equivalent distances in the same operating areas. Covering more than 220 million fully autonomous miles through March, the company reported 82 percent fewer injury-causing crashes and 94 percent fewer crashes causing serious or fatal injuries. The comparisons count collisions regardless of fault.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cWithin a few minutes \u2026 the guard comes down because the driver is so reliable,\u201d Hyun says. \u201cOur car drives the speed limit. It\u2019s safe. It never does a California roll.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cJobs change over time with different technologies,\u201d Hyun says of criticism that autonomous vehicles could displace professional drivers. She points to jobs maintaining, charging and preparing vehicles at Waymo depots. \u201cWe definitely see that as our responsibility to continue to make sure that people are taken care of in all regards.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tOjai recently began welcoming select riders in San Francisco, Los Angeles and Phoenix. Waymo plans to bring the vehicle to Denver, Las Vegas and San Diego as it expands access.<\/p>\n \n\tStewart has used Waymo only in L.A. \u201cI\u2019m waiting for New York,\u201d she says. <\/p>\n \n\tThere, perhaps, a driverless car might finally save Martha Stewart from another yellow cab, a late arrival to her garden club meeting and having to give directions from the back seat.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.hollywoodreporter.com\/wp-content\/themes\/vip\/pmc-hollywoodreporter-2021\/assets\/public\/lazyload-fallback.gif\")
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