Google has revealed its self-driving cars have been involved in 11 “minor accidents” since it began testing the technology six years ago.
Three of the company’s self-driving cars have been involved in traffic accidents since September, according to Associated Press.
Google has since rushed to defend itself, with the head of its self-driving initiative – Chris Urmson – writing a blog post where he shed light on the project for the first time.
“If you spend enough time on the road, accidents will happen whether you’re in a car or a self-driving car,” he wrote.
“Over the six years since we started the project, we’ve been involved in 11 minor accidents (light damage, no injuries) during those 1.7 million miles of autonomous and manual driving with our safety drivers behind the wheel, and not once was the self-driving car the cause of the accident.”
South Australia is currently considering legislation that would give driverless cars the go-ahead.
Venture Capital firm Tank Stream Ventures has raised $20 million in order to invest in early-stage startups.
Managing partner Rui Rodrigues told Fairfax one of the fund’s backers is based in China, meaning there would be attractive expansion opportunities for its new portfolio.
“We weren’t only looking for the capital, and for us to accept a partnership with this significant group was mainly motivated by the fact that it opened up a whole series of opportunities for both the fund and for our companies,” he said.
“Our strategy is to invest in companies that are building locally, but have the potential to scale on a global basis.”
Online shopping site for expecting mothers, Cricket’s Circle, has raised $US2.25 in seed funding to accelerate its growth, according to TechCrunch.
The round was led by Forerunner Ventures and Lerer Hippeau Ventures, with participation from General Catalyst and BoxGroup.
Cricket’s Circle allows expecting parents to register to the site and receive three recommendations for a product they are looking to buy. The recommendations are based off a community of around 200 mothers who have already tested the product.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average is down 85.94 points, falling 0.47% to 18,105.17. The Aussie dollar is currently trading at around 78.9US cents.
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