Motional bets on AI to relaunch robotaxis, eyes fully driverless rides by 2026 - AI News Today Recency

Motional’s plan to restart AI-powered robotaxi services and reach **fully driverless rides by 2026** is intensifying a global race in autonomous mobility, prompting regulators in Europe and Asia to study U.S. deployments in cities like Las Vegas, Boston and Pittsburgh as templates for their own safety and data rules.[2][3] Industry rivals from **Waymo to NVIDIA-backed robotaxi projects** are using Motional’s 2026 target as a competitive benchmark, with one European transport official calling U.S. robotaxi timelines “a de facto global standard we can’t ignore,” while Hyundai’s nearly **$1 billion** lifeline to Motional is being watched by foreign automakers as a

Motional’s relaunch hinges on a more **AI‑centric autonomy stack**, including end‑to‑end machine learning for perception and multi‑object tracking via a “single, unified model,” backed by a high‑throughput web‑based data annotation and human‑in‑the‑loop training engine described in its recent technical blogs.[5] This pivot implies far larger labeled data volumes, heavier simulation and on‑road testing across Boston, Pittsburgh and Las Vegas to validate generalized performance before its now‑delayed target of **fully driverless Ioniq 5 robotaxis in 2026**, a timeline slip that reflects both the complexity of scaling such AI systems safely and intensifying competition from incumb

Hyundai's autonomous vehicle subsidiary **Motional is preparing to unveil undisclosed robotaxi technologies at CES 2026** this month as a final readiness assessment before launching paid services in major U.S. cities within 2026.[1] The company aims to position itself as a new contender in the North American robotaxi race against Waymo, which currently operates the only fully driverless commercial service in the region, while GM's Cruise remains sidelined following accidents.[1] Motional's robotaxi, built on Hyundai's Ioniq 5 EV platform, is expected to generate synergy across Hyundai Motor Group's broader

Motional’s push to restart robotaxi operations and reach **fully driverless rides by 2026** is reverberating across the global mobility sector, where Hyundai Motor Group’s nearly **$1 billion** lifeline and Motional’s AI-centric restructuring are being read as a signal that Asia-based automakers intend to challenge U.S. and Chinese dominance in autonomous ride-hailing.[2] Internationally, regulators and competitors are watching closely: European and Asian transport ministries are studying the fallout from GM Cruise’s U.S. shutdown and Waymo’s U.S. expansion as they weigh how to respond to Motional’s next moves, while NVIDIA, Lucid–Uber–Nuro, and other global

Motional has formally **rebooted its robotaxi program with an AI‑first “Large Driving Model” architecture** and confirmed it is targeting a **fully driverless Level 4 robotaxi service in Las Vegas by the end of 2026**, using Hyundai’s Ioniq 5 EV as the platform.[1][2][3] During a CES presentation in Las Vegas, CEO Laura Major said the company “made the very hard decision to pause our commercial activities, to slow down in the near term so that we could speed up,” as Motional opens an employees‑only robotaxi service with a safety driver this year and prepares to remove human operators and launch a paid, driverless service

U.S. regulators are signaling cautious support for Motional’s relaunch, with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration highlighting that the IONIQ 5 robotaxi is among the first SAE Level 4 autonomous vehicles **certified under Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards**, a milestone Motional calls “a testament to the vehicle’s incredibly thorough development and testing program.”[3][6] In Congress, a draft SELF DRIVE Act of 2026 would expand NHTSA’s authority over automated driving systems and require manufacturers to submit a documented **“safety case”** before interstate deployment, aiming to “support the testing and deployment of automated driving systems while improving roadway safety and maintaining U.S. leadership in vehicle

I cannot provide the requested news update because the search results do not contain information about **consumer and public reaction** to Motional's robotaxi plans. While the results confirm that Motional plans to demonstrate its robotaxi technology at CES 2026 and aims to begin service within 2026[2], they lack any details about how consumers or the public have responded to this announcement, including quotes, sentiment data, or specific feedback from riders or communities. To write an accurate news update on public reaction, I would need search results containing consumer testimonials, polling data, social media sentiment analysis, or statements from local officials and advocacy groups regarding Motional's 2026 robotaxi launch plans.

Motional’s push to relaunch AI-powered robotaxis and reach **fully driverless rides by 2026** is intensifying a global autonomy race, with officials in Europe and Asia watching U.S. rollouts in cities like Las Vegas, Boston and Pittsburgh as a bellwether for how aggressively to update safety and data rules.[2][4] Regulators in major markets are quietly signaling that Hyundai’s nearly **$1 billion** Motional funding deal and upcoming CES 2026 tech showcase could force new international standards on liability, cross-border data sharing, and cybersecurity, with one Seoul-based transport adviser warning that “whoever proves safe driverless service at scale first will set the playbook for

**Regulatory Momentum Accelerates Motional's 2026 Robotaxi Push** The **SELF DRIVE Act of 2026**, introduced in the U.S. House as a discussion draft, strengthens the federal framework for autonomous vehicles by expanding NHTSA's authority to establish safety standards specific to highly automated vehicles and requiring manufacturers to submit documented safety cases before deploying vehicles[1]. Motional's Ioniq 5 robotaxi has already obtained certification under existing Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards[2], positioning the company to operate within an increasingly supportive regulatory environment as the company targets full commercialization in Las Vegas by year-end[5]. Internationally, regulatory momentum

Motional is reallocating capital into **core AI perception and planning systems**, including a unified multi-object tracking model and an expanded human‑in‑the‑loop data engine, to support a delayed but more technically mature launch of fully driverless Ioniq 5 robotaxis in **2026**, two years later than originally planned.[2][5] This shift implies denser sensor fusion pipelines and larger training datasets from expanded testing in Boston, Pittsburgh and Las Vegas, but also raises the bar on safety and regulatory scrutiny, as Motional aims to match or surpass Waymo‑level reliability in complex urban environments while operating with a leaner post‑restructuring team (down from roughly 1,

Motional’s relaunch plan centers on concentrating resources into its **core driverless AI stack**—including end‑to‑end machine‑learning for perception and multi‑object tracking, a “human‑in‑the‑loop” data engine, and large‑scale simulation—while pausing near‑term commercial operations and pushing fully driverless Ioniq 5 robotaxi service to **2026**, two years later than originally planned.[2][5] This bet on AI implies far heavier dependence on high‑quality labeled data and generalized models across cities like Boston, Pittsburgh and Las Vegas, raising both the technical bar (reliability comparable to or exceeding human drivers in long‑tail edge cases

Motional’s relaunch hinges on consolidating its perception, prediction and planning stack into **end‑to‑end machine‑learning models**, including a new unified multi‑object tracking system that identifies and follows all relevant road users in real time to support fully driverless Ioniq 5 robotaxis by 2026.[2][5] This shift toward a data‑hungry “human‑in‑the‑loop” AI engine and high‑performance web‑based annotation platforms[5] implies Motional must dramatically scale curated driving data and corner‑case mining in Boston, Pittsburgh and Las Vegas, raising the technical bar on validation and safety at a time when only Waymo has proved a fully