An autonomous robot is a robot that acts without recourse to human control. The first autonomous robots environment were known as Elmer and Elsie,which were constructed in the late 1940s by W. Grey Walter. They were the first robots in history that were programmed to "think" the way biological brains do and meant to have free will. Elmer and Elsie were often labeled as tortoises because of how they were shaped and the manner in which they moved. They were capable of phototaxis which is the movement that occurs in response to light stimulus.
A self-driving car,also known as an autonomous car (AC),driverless car,or robotic car (robo-car),is a car that is capable of operating with reduced or no human input. Self-driving cars are responsible for all driving activities including perceiving the environment,monitoring important systems,and controlling the vehicle,including navigating from origin to destination.
Elon Reeve Musk is a businessman and investor. He is the founder,chairman,CEO,and CTO of SpaceX;angel investor,CEO,product architect,and former chairman of Tesla,Inc.;owner,executive chairman,and CTO of X Corp.;founder of the Boring Company and xAI;co-founder of Neuralink and OpenAI;and president of the Musk Foundation. He is one of the wealthiest people in the world,with an estimated net worth of US$190 billion as of March 2024,according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index,and $195 billion according to Forbes,primarily from his ownership stakes in Tesla and SpaceX.
Tesla,Inc. is an American multinational automotive and clean energy company headquartered in Austin,Texas,which designs,manufactures and sells electric vehicles,stationary battery energy storage devices from home to grid-scale,solar panels and solar shingles,and related products and services.
Daniela L. Rus is a roboticist and computer scientist,Director of the MIT Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL),and the Andrew and Erna Viterbi Professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (EECS) at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She is the author of the books Computing the Future and The Heart and the Chip.
The Future of Life Institute (FLI) is a nonprofit organization which aims to steer transformative technology towards benefiting life and away from large-scale risks,with a focus on existential risk from advanced artificial intelligence (AI). FLI's work includes grantmaking,educational outreach,and advocacy within the United Nations,United States government,and European Union institutions.
Experiments have been conducted on self-driving cars since 1939;promising trials took place in the 1950s and work has proceeded since then. The first self-sufficient and truly autonomous cars appeared in the 1980s,with Carnegie Mellon University's Navlab and ALV projects in 1984 and Mercedes-Benz and Bundeswehr University Munich's Eureka Prometheus Project in 1987. Since then,numerous major companies and research organizations have developed working autonomous vehicles including Mercedes-Benz,General Motors,Continental Automotive Systems,Autoliv Inc.,Bosch,Nissan,Toyota,Audi,Volvo,Vislab from University of Parma,Oxford University and Google. In July 2013,Vislab demonstrated BRAiVE,a vehicle that moved autonomously on a mixed traffic route open to public traffic.
Tesla Autopilot is an advanced driver-assistance system (ADAS) developed by Tesla that amounts to partial vehicle automation. Tesla provides "Base Autopilot" on all vehicles,which includes lane centering and traffic-aware cruise control. Owners may purchase an upgrade to "Enhanced Autopilot" (EA) which adds semi-autonomous navigation on limited access roadways,self-parking,and the ability to summon the car from a garage or parking spot. The company claims the features reduce accidents caused by driver negligence and fatigue from long-term driving. Collisions and deaths involving Tesla cars with Autopilot engaged have drawn the attention of the press and government agencies.
Robotic governance provides a regulatory framework to deal with autonomous and intelligent machines. This includes research and development activities as well as handling of these machines. The idea is related to the concepts of corporate governance,technology governance and IT-governance,which provide a framework for the management of organizations or the focus of a global IT infrastructure.
Neuralink Corp. is an American neurotechnology company that is developing implantable brain–computer interfaces (BCIs),based in Fremont,California,as of 2024. Founded by Elon Musk and a team of seven scientists and engineers,Neuralink was launched in 2016 and was first publicly reported in March 2017.
Robin Roberson Murphy is an American computer scientist and roboticist. She is the Raytheon Professor of Computer Science and Engineering at Texas A&M University. She is known as a founder of the fields of rescue robotics and human-robot interaction and for inserting robots into disasters. Her case studies of how unmanned systems under perform in the field led cognitive systems engineering researcher David Woods to pose the (Robin) Murphy's Law of Autonomy:a deployment of robotic systems will fall short of the target level of autonomy,creating or exacerbating a shortfall in mechanisms for coordination with human problem holders. Her TED talk “These Robots Come to the Rescue After a Disaster” was listed in TED Talks:The Official TED Guide to Public Speaking as one of the examples of a good TED talk. Murphy is also known for using science fiction as an innovative method of teaching artificial intelligence and robotics.
Pieter Abbeel is a professor of electrical engineering and computer sciences,Director of the Berkeley Robot Learning Lab,and co-director of the Berkeley AI Research (BAIR) Lab at the University of California,Berkeley. He is also the co-founder of covariant.ai,a venture-funded start-up that aims to teach robots new,complex skills,and co-founder of Gradescope,an online grading system that has been implemented in over 500 universities nationwide. He is best known for his cutting-edge research in robotics and machine learning,particularly in deep reinforcement learning. In 2021,he joined AIX Ventures as an Investment Partner. AIX Ventures is a venture capital fund that invests in artificial intelligence startups.
Vivian Chu is an American roboticist and entrepreneur,specializing in the field of human-robot interaction. She is Chief Technology Officer at Diligent Robotics,a company she co-founded in 2017 for creating autonomous,mobile,socially intelligent robots.
Tesla,Inc. has been criticized for its cars,workplace culture,business practices,and occupational safety. Many of the criticisms are also directed toward Elon Musk,the company's CEO and Product Architect. Critics have also accused Tesla of deceptive marketing,unfulfilled promises,and fraud. The company is currently facing criminal and civil investigations into its self-driving claims. Critics have highlighted Tesla's downplaying of issues,and Tesla's alleged retaliation against several whistleblowers.
Victoria Chibuogu Nneji is a Nigerian-born American computer scientist,design and innovation strategist,and a lecturing fellow,known for her research on robotics,automation,human-centered design,and autonomous transportation.
Optimus,also known as Tesla Bot,is a conceptual general-purpose robotic humanoid under development by Tesla,Inc. It was announced at the company's Artificial Intelligence (AI) Day event on August 19,2021. CEO Elon Musk claimed during the event that Tesla would likely build a prototype by 2022. Musk is on record having said that he thinks Optimus "has the potential to be more significant than [Tesla's] vehicle business over time."
Karen Ann Panetta is an American computer engineer and inventor who is a professor and Dean of Graduate Education at Tufts University. Her research considers machine learning and automated systems. She is a Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers,the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics and the National Academy of Inventors. She is a member of the National Academy of Engineering,and Fellow of the European Academy of Sciences and the Arts,and the Asia-Pacific Artificial Intelligence Association. She was the STEM Advisor to President Joyce Banda of Malawi and U.S. Ambassador to Slovenia,Linda Blanchard.
Lex Fridman is a Russian-American computer scientist and podcaster. He hosts the Lex Fridman Podcast,in which he interviews guests,which have included prominent figures in various fields,including science,technology,sports,and politics.
Elon Musk's Crash Course is a 2022 New York Times–FX documentary film directed and produced by Emma Schwartz with reporting by Cade Metz and Neal Boudette. The documentary explores the promises made by Tesla's CEO Elon Musk in regards to self-driving cars and contrasts that with the fatal accidents that have occurred using the technology.
United States Navy 
