E11: All Things Autonomy with John McNelis from Fenwick

Inside Transportation

On this week's Inside Transportation podcast, we have John McNelis as a guest. John is a leading advisor, writer and speaker in the field of autonomous vehicle technology, John chairs the California Technology Council’s Autonomous Transportation Initiative and serves as the industry lead for Fenwick’s autonomous transportation and shared mobility practice. He works with some of Silicon Valley’s top investment firms on their diligence related to intellectual property and emerging technologies. Note: Fenwick is a sponsor of this podcast This is episode eleven of the Inside Transportation podcast. This podcast was made possible by Ford Motor Company (www.ford.com) and Fenwick (www.fenwick.com). Featuring Jason Calacanis (Angel investor, LAUNCH, Inside.com), John McNeils (Law Firm of Fenwick & West) and Johan Moreno (inside.com). Subscribe to Inside Transportation newsletter: inside.com/transportation Subscribe to Inside Electric Vehicles newsletter: inside.com/evs Recorded on June 26, 2020. 3:33 - John, Jason and Johan briefly discuss the Amazon-Zoox deal, which he worked on. 8:08 - As self-driving technology becomes more ubiquitous, automated driving software is bound to fail, which brings questions on who will be responsible for its mistakes. Who is responsible for autonomous cars gone wrong? 16:41 - J, J & J discuss when we’d see a Level 5 autonomous car. 21:48 - Jason asks John about weather and how that might affect the performance of automated vehicles. 26:00 - Johan asks whether developers of autonomous vehicle developers are looking for more guidance or less guidance from the government. 30:00 - The three talk about consumer trust with autonomous vehicles and what it will take for people to accept automated cars. 35:00 - The three talk about Tesla Autopilot and issues presented with lane markings on roads. 43:00 - Johan brings up whether insurance companies will become obsolete after autonomous vehicles are on roads. 47:00 - The three discuss partnerships between automakers and autonomous vehicle technology developers and what the future of those prospects are. 50:00 - Jason asks Johan and John whether they’ll see an eVTOL service, Level 5 autonomy or a woolly mammoth first