Cruise, the robot-taxi company controlled by General Motors (GM.N), has hired an outside law firm and technology consultants in the aftermath of an accident that led it to suspend all driverless vehicle operations, Cruise said Friday. The board of GM’s Cruise unit has hired law firm Quinn Emanuel to review Cruise management’s responses to regulators investigating the October 2 accident and technology consultancy Exponent to review Cruise’s technology.
The move comes amid heightened scrutiny of automated vehicles after the death of a pedestrian struck by an Uber (UBER.O) driver who was allegedly distracted. The incident, which occurred in San Francisco, has raised concerns about whether companies developing self-driving car software are putting passenger safety at risk by failing to address human error and neglecting to include the full range of safety features that are standard on traditional cars. It also highlighted the need for more disclosure by automakers and technology providers of the complete list of sensors, cameras, lasers, and other devices that make up the driving systems on their vehicles.
Cruise’s decision to pause operations and hire outside experts follows a request from California’s transportation department to probe the October 2 accident in which one of its robotaxis struck and trapped a woman on Fifth and Market Street in downtown San Francisco. A video of the incident posted by TechCrunch shows the Cruise vehicle braking, then running over the pedestrian, who was already on the ground from having been hit by a human-driven car that then fled the scene.
A Cruise spokeswoman said the company will cooperate with the NHTSA investigation and has been “in regular communication” with the agency. She added that Cruise’s safety record of over 5 million miles continues to outperform comparable human drivers at a time when pedestrian injuries and deaths are on the rise.
The suspension is a setback for Cruise, which has lost $700 million in the third quarter as it increases spending to expand its operation to 15 U.S. cities and Japan in partnership with Honda. GM Chief Executive Mary Barra, who sits on Cruise’s board, has told investors that the business could generate $50 billion in revenue by 2030.
But the incident involving the woman stuck under the Cruise robotaxi also fed into a narrative that autonomous vehicle developers are in trouble, according to Bryant Walker Smith, a University of South Carolina law professor who studies autonomous vehicle safety. He said he wanted to know who knew what when at Cruise and GM in the wake of the incident. He added that if the woman’s injuries were severe enough to require her to miss work and go on disability, Cruise should be held liable for those lost wages.