A car was filmed driving across Sacramento’s Tower Bridge, but it appears driverless.  In actual fact it was being driven by a human being but that human was not sitting in the driver’s seat or indeed anywhere in the car. They were driving it from the company’s headquarters at Phantom Auto’s Mountain View – more than 100 miles away!

This system is called teleoperation; which is the step before safe driving can be conducted autonomously on highways and city streets within all driving conditions.  So until that time – which experts purport is decades away – remote monitors and operators will be used by human beings and the wheel can be grabbed if the computer attached to the car gets stumped.  According to Elliot Katz, co-founder of Phantom Auto and Chief Strategy Officer:

“We believe you will always need a human in the loop. There are so many oddball scenarios multiple times a day.”

Until then, Phantom Auto will be showcasing what it has in Sacramento and locals will seecompany reps “geo-mapping” the roads from downtown to Sacramento State.