#Autonomous taxi

[omshinde5145]

Robotaxi Market Share, Sales Channels and Overview Till 2030

The Robotaxi Market was valued at USD 0.5 billion in 2023 and will surpass USD 42.1 billion by 2030; growing at a CAGR of 88.4% during 2024 - 2030. These autonomous vehicles, designed to operate without a human driver, are poised to revolutionize urban mobility, offering a glimpse into a world where transportation is safer, more efficient, and more accessible. The robotaxi market, though still in its nascent stages, is growing at an unprecedented pace, driven by advances in artificial intelligence, machine learning, and automotive technology.

The concept of robotaxis represents a paradigm shift in how we think about transportation. Unlike traditional taxis or ridesharing services, robotaxis are fully autonomous, relying on a combination of sensors, cameras, and sophisticated algorithms to navigate complex urban environments. This autonomy eliminates the need for a human driver, which not only reduces operating costs but also addresses some of the key challenges facing the transportation industry, such as driver shortages and safety concerns.

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Market Growth and Key Players

The robotaxi market is expected to witness significant growth over the next decade, driven by the increasing demand for autonomous vehicles and the rapid development of supporting technologies. Major automotive manufacturers, technology companies, and startups are all vying for a share of this emerging market. Companies like Tesla, Waymo (a subsidiary of Alphabet Inc.), and Cruise (backed by General Motors) are leading the charge, each with their own approach to developing and deploying robotaxi fleets.

In addition to these established players, numerous startups are entering the fray, bringing innovative solutions to the table. For instance, companies like Zoox, Aurora, and Nuro are exploring different aspects of the robotaxi ecosystem, from vehicle design to software development, contributing to the overall growth and diversification of the market.

Benefits and Challenges

The widespread adoption of robotaxis promises numerous benefits, both for consumers and society at large. For consumers, robotaxis offer a convenient, on-demand transportation option that is likely to be more affordable than traditional taxis or ridesharing services, thanks to the elimination of driver-related costs. Moreover, the use of electric vehicles in robotaxi fleets can contribute to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, supporting the global push towards sustainable transportation.

From a societal perspective, robotaxis have the potential to significantly reduce traffic accidents, the vast majority of which are caused by human error. Autonomous vehicles are designed to operate with a high degree of precision and can communicate with other vehicles and infrastructure in real time, minimizing the risk of collisions.

However, the transition to a robotaxi-dominated transportation landscape is not without its challenges. Regulatory hurdles, cybersecurity concerns, and the need for robust infrastructure to support autonomous vehicles are all significant obstacles that must be addressed. Additionally, the impact on employment in the transportation sector cannot be overlooked, as the widespread adoption of robotaxis could lead to job losses for drivers.

The Road Ahead

As the robotaxi market continues to evolve, it is clear that we are on the cusp of a transportation revolution. The benefits of autonomous vehicles are undeniable, but the road to widespread adoption will require careful navigation of the various challenges that lie ahead. Governments, businesses, and consumers all have a role to play in shaping the future of transportation.

For businesses, investing in the development and deployment of robotaxi technology presents a significant opportunity. Those who can successfully navigate the technical and regulatory challenges will be well-positioned to capitalize on the growing demand for autonomous transportation services.

For consumers, the advent of robotaxis promises to make urban mobility more convenient, affordable, and sustainable. As the technology matures and becomes more widely available, it is likely that robotaxis will become a common sight on our streets, reshaping the way we think about transportation.

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Conclusion  

the rise of robotaxis represents a bold step forward in the evolution of transportation. While challenges remain, the potential benefits are immense, making the robotaxi market one of the most exciting and dynamic sectors to watch in the coming years.

[viejospellejos]

Montando en un taxi autónomo en San Francisco:

[telaviv-delhi]

Kisérteties élmény olyan autókkal talàlkozni, amelyekben senki, de senki sem ül. Sofőr sem. Nem hittünk a szemünknek, talán csak elbújt a humán tényező, de Ügyvédem haláltmegvető kíváncsisággal odarohant egy pirosnál rostokoló kísértetautóhoz, osztán jó alaposan körülkémlelt benne. Teljesen üres - ��jságolta  szívem választottja elkerekedett szemekkel. - Hacsak nem a csomagtartóból vezet a sofőr.... És vajon merrefelé mennek?!!! Nincs otthon a gazdi és elcsatangoltak egy kis városnézésre? Esetleg összejárnak egy parkolóba bandázni?!!! Autósmoziba?!!!!

Fellapoztuk a netet és kiderült, hogy miközben Segglikországban a taxismaffia Metál Zoltán vezetésével az Uber kicsinálása utána fasiszta-elmeroggyant kormányunk zsoldjában a bringások, Karácsony és minden progresszív változás kicsinálásával van elfoglalva, addig a Hanyatló Nyugaton már vidáman gurulnak a Google taxivállalatának, a Waymo meg a GM Cruise önvezető járművei, San Francisco és Phoenix után Los Angelesre készülve. Magyarországot vélhetőleg nagy ívben kikerülik, elvégre a fidesz nem hagyhatja, hogy derék taxisainak el kelljen menni valami hasznosabb munkát végezni :)

Viszont még vannak gyermekbetegségei az önvezető autóknak, megfelelő minőségű wi-fi nélkül egyszerűen leállnak. Tegnap éppen Friscoban (miközben mi a Castro negyedben spottingoltuk a melegeket) okoztak 20 perces dugót a GM autói egy fesztivál miatt:

On Friday, the North Beach neighborhood of San Francisco was briefly clogged with traffic after autonomous taxis froze at a busy intersection. The jam consisted of at least 10 driverless Chevy Bolts operated by Cruise, General Motors' self-driving car subsidiary. 

"One of them was stopped at the top of the hill for no apparent reason," witness Valerie Jacobson told NBC Bay Area.

The mishap coincided with a music festival taking place in nearby Golden Gate Park. Cruise blamed the festival for interfering with network connections to the cars.

"A large festival posed wireless bandwidth constraints causing delayed connectivity to our vehicles. We are actively investigating and working on solutions to prevent this from happening again. We apologize to those who were impacted," said a statement put out by Cruise on social media.

[dizzizk]

[wigoutlet]

[trendynewsnow]

Waymo Raises $5.6 Billion in Record Funding to Expand Autonomous Taxi Fleet

Waymo Secures $5.6 Billion in Record Funding Round In a significant stride towards expanding its fleet of autonomous robot taxis and venturing into new urban landscapes, Waymo has successfully raised an impressive $5.6 billion from a diverse array of outside investors, marking its largest funding round to date. This substantial investment has been spearheaded by Waymo’s parent company, Alphabet,…

[afrotumble]

Tekedra Mawakana, Co-Chief Executive Officer

[adaines-furious-feast]

I'm a writer. It's how I buy food and stuff.

Someone approached me offering a fraction of what I currently need to survive to write with Chat GPT.

I don't know what's more insulting, paying someone next to nothing or going "hey, you're writing is no better than AI".

[michaelgabrill]

NASA Autonomous Flight Software Successfully Used in Air Taxi Stand-Ins

In late October, two research helicopters from the manufacturer Sikorsky, a Lockheed Martin company, made a dozen test flights over Long Island Sound, Connecticut taking care to avoid other aircraft in the area around them. Except the ordinary-looking helicopters were flying autonomously – guided by NASA-designed software – and those other aircraft were virtual, part […] from NASA https://ift.tt/NWIFira

[mostlysignssomeportents]

Three AI insights for hard-charging, future-oriented smartypantses

MERE HOURS REMAIN for the Kickstarter for the audiobook for The Bezzle, the sequel to Red Team Blues, narrated by @wilwheaton! You can pre-order the audiobook and ebook, DRM free, as well as the hardcover, signed or unsigned. There’s also bundles with Red Team Blues in ebook, audio or paperback.

Living in the age of AI hype makes demands on all of us to come up with smartypants prognostications about how AI is about to change everything forever, and wow, it's pretty amazing, huh?

AI pitchmen don't make it easy. They like to pile on the cognitive dissonance and demand that we all somehow resolve it. This is a thing cult leaders do, too – tell blatant and obvious lies to their followers. When a cult follower repeats the lie to others, they are demonstrating their loyalty, both to the leader and to themselves.

Over and over, the claims of AI pitchmen turn out to be blatant lies. This has been the case since at least the age of the Mechanical Turk, the 18th chess-playing automaton that was actually just a chess player crammed into the base of an elaborate puppet that was exhibited as an autonomous, intelligent robot.

The most prominent Mechanical Turk huckster is Elon Musk, who habitually, blatantly and repeatedly lies about AI. He's been promising "full self driving" Telsas in "one to two years" for more than a decade. Periodically, he'll "demonstrate" a car that's in full-self driving mode – which then turns out to be canned, recorded demo:

https://www.reuters.com/technology/tesla-video-promoting-self-driving-was-staged-engineer-testifies-2023-01-17/

Musk even trotted an autonomous, humanoid robot on-stage at an investor presentation, failing to mention that this mechanical marvel was just a person in a robot suit:

https://www.siliconrepublic.com/machines/elon-musk-tesla-robot-optimus-ai

Now, Musk has announced that his junk-science neural interface company, Neuralink, has made the leap to implanting neural interface chips in a human brain. As Joan Westenberg writes, the press have repeated this claim as presumptively true, despite its wild implausibility:

https://joanwestenberg.com/blog/elon-musk-lies

Neuralink, after all, is a company notorious for mutilating primates in pursuit of showy, meaningless demos:

https://www.wired.com/story/elon-musk-pcrm-neuralink-monkey-deaths/

I'm perfectly willing to believe that Musk would risk someone else's life to help him with this nonsense, because he doesn't see other people as real and deserving of compassion or empathy. But he's also profoundly lazy and is accustomed to a world that unquestioningly swallows his most outlandish pronouncements, so Occam's Razor dictates that the most likely explanation here is that he just made it up.

The odds that there's a human being beta-testing Musk's neural interface with the only brain they will ever have aren't zero. But I give it the same odds as the Raelians' claim to have cloned a human being:

https://edition.cnn.com/2003/ALLPOLITICS/01/03/cf.opinion.rael/

The human-in-a-robot-suit gambit is everywhere in AI hype. Cruise, GM's disgraced "robot taxi" company, had 1.5 remote operators for every one of the cars on the road. They used AI to replace a single, low-waged driver with 1.5 high-waged, specialized technicians. Truly, it was a marvel.

Globalization is key to maintaining the guy-in-a-robot-suit phenomenon. Globalization gives AI pitchmen access to millions of low-waged workers who can pretend to be software programs, allowing us to pretend to have transcended the capitalism's exploitation trap. This is also a very old pattern – just a couple decades after the Mechanical Turk toured Europe, Thomas Jefferson returned from the continent with the dumbwaiter. Jefferson refined and installed these marvels, announcing to his dinner guests that they allowed him to replace his "servants" (that is, his slaves). Dumbwaiters don't replace slaves, of course – they just keep them out of sight:

https://www.stuartmcmillen.com/blog/behind-the-dumbwaiter/

So much AI turns out to be low-waged people in a call center in the Global South pretending to be robots that Indian techies have a joke about it: "AI stands for 'absent Indian'":

https://pluralistic.net/2024/01/29/pay-no-attention/#to-the-little-man-behind-the-curtain

A reader wrote to me this week. They're a multi-decade veteran of Amazon who had a fascinating tale about the launch of Amazon Go, the "fully automated" Amazon retail outlets that let you wander around, pick up goods and walk out again, while AI-enabled cameras totted up the goods in your basket and charged your card for them.

According to this reader, the AI cameras didn't work any better than Tesla's full-self driving mode, and had to be backstopped by a minimum of three camera operators in an Indian call center, "so that there could be a quorum system for deciding on a customer's activity – three autopilots good, two autopilots bad."

Amazon got a ton of press from the launch of the Amazon Go stores. A lot of it was very favorable, of course: Mister Market is insatiably horny for firing human beings and replacing them with robots, so any announcement that you've got a human-replacing robot is a surefire way to make Line Go Up. But there was also plenty of critical press about this – pieces that took Amazon to task for replacing human beings with robots.

What was missing from the criticism? Articles that said that Amazon was probably lying about its robots, that it had replaced low-waged clerks in the USA with even-lower-waged camera-jockeys in India.

Which is a shame, because that criticism would have hit Amazon where it hurts, right there in the ole Line Go Up. Amazon's stock price boost off the back of the Amazon Go announcements represented the market's bet that Amazon would evert out of cyberspace and fill all of our physical retail corridors with monopolistic robot stores, moated with IP that prevented other retailers from similarly slashing their wage bills. That unbridgeable moat would guarantee Amazon generations of monopoly rents, which it would share with any shareholders who piled into the stock at that moment.

See the difference? Criticize Amazon for its devastatingly effective automation and you help Amazon sell stock to suckers, which makes Amazon executives richer. Criticize Amazon for lying about its automation, and you clobber the personal net worth of the executives who spun up this lie, because their portfolios are full of Amazon stock:

https://sts-news.medium.com/youre-doing-it-wrong-notes-on-criticism-and-technology-hype-18b08b4307e5

Amazon Go didn't go. The hundreds of Amazon Go stores we were promised never materialized. There's an embarrassing rump of 25 of these things still around, which will doubtless be quietly shuttered in the years to come. But Amazon Go wasn't a failure. It allowed its architects to pocket massive capital gains on the way to building generational wealth and establishing a new permanent aristocracy of habitual bullshitters dressed up as high-tech wizards.

"Wizard" is the right word for it. The high-tech sector pretends to be science fiction, but it's usually fantasy. For a generation, America's largest tech firms peddled the dream of imminently establishing colonies on distant worlds or even traveling to other solar systems, something that is still so far in our future that it might well never come to pass:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/01/09/astrobezzle/#send-robots-instead

During the Space Age, we got the same kind of performative bullshit. On The Well David Gans mentioned hearing a promo on SiriusXM for a radio show with "the first AI co-host." To this, Craig L Maudlin replied, "Reminds me of fins on automobiles."

Yup, that's exactly it. An AI radio co-host is to artificial intelligence as a Cadillac Eldorado Biaritz tail-fin is to interstellar rocketry.

Back the Kickstarter for the audiobook of The Bezzle here!

If you’d like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here’s a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/01/31/neural-interface-beta-tester/#tailfins

[foone]

Is it important to you when applying to a company that they're not making bullshit?

specifically, like maybe there's a job for building autonomous flying sky taxis. you don't believe there's any chance they can pull that off, so this company is doomed in the long run.

like, it's not hazardous or wrong, they're not specifically bombing orphans or anything, but you definitely don't believe the company is gonna achieve anything.

[nevadancitizen]

-> CH. 14: NO MISFORTUNE IS WITHOUT BLESSING

synopsis: you and connor make your way to cyberlife tower.

word count: 3.1k

ships: Connor/Reader, Hank Anderson & Reader

notes: i hate that this fic is almost over i'm really sad ☹️☹️

HoFS taglist: @catladyhere , @foggy0trees0 , @princessofenkanomiya , @n30n-f43 , @igna4400

HEAD OF FALSE SECURITY MASTERLIST

You lean your head back against the headrest and sigh, looking out of the window. There’s barely anyone else out on the roads – the curfew is preventing anyone from participating in the night life of Detroit. 

Connor shifts on the other side of the automated taxi, once again in his stiff CyberLife suit.

“I just can’t believe it,” you blurt out. “Like, me? Out of everyone it could’ve been – me?”

“What do you mean?” Connor asks. 

“You know what I mean.” You look over at him, then at the floor of the car. “I can’t believe my life is… an experiment. That I’m an android, and my entire life was carefully constructed. And also that I’m patient zero. That’s a big one.”

Connor barely just moves his hand closer to yours where it rests on the car seat, and you just barely glimpse it out of the corner of your eye. “Do you want to talk about it?”

“No.” You laugh humorlessly. “I think I’ll containerize this and unpack it later. I don’t have time for it now.”

“Well…” His pinkie brushes yours. “I’ll be here for you when you decide to, Officer.”

You glance down at your barely-touching fingers, but it still ignites more sparks in your belly than you can count. You suppress a smile and look out the window. “Thank you.”

The car rolls to a stop in front of the CyberLife gates. A few armed guards are standing around, and one of them comes around the Connor’s side of the car. 

He rolls down his window and looks over at the guard. “Connor model, serial number 313 248 317.”

The guard gestures at you with the butt of his gun. “What about you?”

“A police unit. An RU700, serial number 313 499 095,” Connor answers for you. “We’re to be expected.”

The guard looks over at the other guards, then back to Connor. A small voice in his helmet chirps, “Identification successful.” He steps back and waves at the others. The gates lower and Connor rolls the window back up. The car starts driving again.

You shift back in your seat and sigh, the tension leaving your shoulders. When you face forward, you notice a car disappearing around the curve in front of you.

“Huh,” you mumble. “I didn’t think there would be anyone else out on the roads.”

“It could be a model like myself being transported to CyberLife for direct deactivation,” Connor says. “Though I don’t know of any other prototypes like me.”

You look out the window. The ground-level monorail beside the road hums as it whirs past. A statue in the middle of the pseudo-moat in front of the CyberLife tower stands tall, its arms bent and hands cradling something invisible.

“I thought Americans were advanced in their sculpture technology,” you say. 

Connor looks over at you. “What do you mean?”

“The statue.” You point at it. “It’s not very impressive.”

His face twists in confusion, and there’s a flicker of an awkward smile. “What is your criteria for an impressive statue?”

“There’s one by Facility 3826,” you say. “The Soviet Sickle Monument – it’s a statue of a man holding up a golden sickle with one hand, and holding a bag of grain against his chest with his other arm. It was designed by two sculptors and built autonomously by the Kollektiv 1.0 neural network. I don’t remember which year it was erected, but I know it was a few years after World War 2. That’s an impressive statue.”

Connor’s LED blinks for a moment. “The designers were Elena Mukhina and Alexander Kibalnikov, and it was built in 1951. It’s described as the ‘world’s first collaborative artistic effort between man and machine’.”

You look over at him with a soft smile. “You said their names right.”

“Huh?” He looks back at you.

“Your pronunciation,” you say. “It’s getting better.”

Connor’s eyebrows furrow. “I don’t recall mispronouncing any Russian names.”

You huff out a laugh and roll your eyes with a smile. “Mhm. Sure.”

The car rolls to a stop, and you follow him out of the car. You glance up and watch a police drone circle above. Two guards standing in front of the door let you into the building, which holds more guards than civilians. 

You look around. Everything is white, grey, and clean-cut. The guardrails are made of glass, and the only plants in here are clumps of carefully-maintained bamboo stalks.

The guard in front of you and Connor holds up a hand, and the two guards on either side of both of you watch carefully. 

“We’ll escort you,” the front guard says. 

“Thank you,” Connor says. He starts walking, and you follow. As do the other two guards, who bring up the rear.

Your heart beats a little harder as you walk. Connor is smart – a genius, even. Still, you wish you could tap into his head and see what he’s thinking, if only for your peace of mind.

You reach out and brush the backs of your fingers against Connor’s, just light enough to seem like an accident, but he knows better. He glances over at you and gives a quick, resolute nod as a silent reassurance. He’s got a plan. He’s just waiting to execute it.

The front guard leads you and Connor into a space that reminds you of the cylindrical plexiglass tube the PEC-4 Birchtree is held in. But there are no angels here – only plastic, unmoving mannequin androids that stand on pedestals that line the walkways. 

The guard stops by the doors to an elevator, then jerks his head toward it, silently gesturing for you and Connor to go in. You bite the inside of your lip and follow Connor inside. Only one guard files in after you.

“Agent 84,” the guard says as he pushes a few buttons on the elevator’s interface. “Level sub-49.”

You glance over at the tower directory and notice that level sub-49 is the warehouse. Your eyebrows furrow and you brush the back of your hand against Connor’s again. He nods again without looking at you. 

The guard puts his foot in the door and reaches into his sidearm holster. You tense as he pulls it out, but he grabs it by the barrel and hands it to Connor. 

“Чего…?” You mumble as Connor takes the pistol.

The guard takes a step back and the elevator doors close. As soon as it starts moving, you feel something solid and familiar press against your back. 

“Connor?” You say.

“You will do as I say, when I say it,” Connor says, his voice cold and even. It reminds you of who he was in the interrogation room. “I am the one with the gun, and you are another expendable deviant.”

“I – what?” You say. “Connor, what are you doing?”

“You will act as a bargaining chip to prevent Connor from waking the androids in the warehouse,” he says. 

“Connor?” You repeat. “There’s a second Connor?”

“I am the second Connor,” he says. “The original is in the warehouse.”

The elevator dings, and the doors open. Fake-Connor takes your upper arm with one hand and presses the muzzle of the gun against your back harder. “Walk.”

You walk, maintaining an even and slow pace. Fake-Connor keeps the gun in contact with your back as he walks behind you, guiding you in between the rows of stationary androids. He pushes you into the aisle, keeping the gun trained at your head. 

“Эй!” You stumble, holding your hands up. “Тихо, тихо.”

Right in front of you is Connor – the real one (you think). He’s frozen where he stands, interfacing with an android, his hand wrapped around the android’s forearm. His tongue darts out to lick his lips nervously as his eyes flicker between you and Fake-Connor. 

“Let go of the android, Connor!” Fake-Connor says. “And I won’t shoot.”

Connor’s eyes slowly take you in as his mouth falls open. Words fail him for a moment, but he finally manages a small, “You’re alive?”

You swallow and nod. “Yes. I just… it’s a long story, okay?”

Connor nods back, his lips still parted with that dumbstruck look on his face.

“The Officer’s life is in your hands,” Fake-Connor cuts in. “Now it’s time to decide what matters most; them, or the revolution?”

“I’m sorry, Officer,” Connor says. There’s a sinking feeling in your stomach. “You shouldn’t have gotten mixed up in all this.”

“It’s okay,” you say. “Just do what you have to. I’ll come back… I – I think.”

“I can’t take that risk!” Connor says, then he turns to Fake-Connor. “If I surrender, how do I know you won’t kill them?”

“I’ll only do what’s strictly necessary to accomplish my mission,” Fake-Connor says. “It’s up to you whether or not that includes deactivating this deviant.”

Connor’s eyebrows draw together, but before he can say anything, Fake-Connor steps closer to you, pressing the muzzle of the gun against the side of your head in a way that’s sickeningly familiar. 

“Enough talk!” He snaps. “It’s time to decide who you really are. Are you gonna save the Officer’s life? Or are you gonna sacrifice them?”

Connor’s jaw clenches, then he steps away, raising his hands. “Alright, alright! You win.”

Fake-Connor glances at you, then tears the muzzle of the gun away from your head to point it at Connor. 

Many thoughts overwhelm your mind in that fraction of a second: ‘There is no such thing as a warning shot.’ ‘They’re deactivating androids all over Detroit.’ ‘Can Connor come back from this?’ ‘He probably can’t.’ ‘But I can.’ ‘Can’t I?’

You throw yourself at Fake-Connor, grabbing for the gun. You manage to get the barrel and his wrist, then he’s launched backwards. Connor kicked him back. The gun clatters to the floor, skidding away. 

You scramble after it, turning your back on both Connors. You pick it up, holding the grip with one hand and cradling it with the other. You turn and place your finger on the trigger and press lightly on the trigger safety. Any more pressure and you’d fire a shot. 

“Стой!” You bark. “Stop!”

The two Connors detangle themselves and one stands. “Thanks, Officer. I don’t know how I would’ve managed without you.” He looks at the other Connor, then back to you. “Get rid of him – we have no time to lose!”

“It’s me, Officer!” The other Connor says. “I’m the real Connor.”

You let up on the trigger safety as you take a half-step back. They’re identical – there’s literally no way to tell them apart.

“I…” You take a deep breath as you realize that you couldn’t just ask which one of them is the deviant. They’d both insist that they were. “I don’t know.”

“What are you doing?” The Connor on the right asks. “I’m the real Connor. Give me the gun and I’ll take care of –”

“Don’t!” You snap. Your eyes flicker between them as a nervousness settles in your body, threatening to rise up your throat.

“Why don’t you ask us something?” The Connor on the left suggests. “Something only the real Connor would know.”

“Khm…” You mumble. “Who was with me when we first met?”

“Hank!” The Connor on the right says. “You were both in Jimmy’s Bar. I checked four other bars before I found you both. You drove us to the scene of a homicide. The victim’s name was Carlos Ortiz, and you processed his android.”

The Connor on the left looks a bit panicked as his eyes fall to the floor. He mumbles, almost to himself, “He uploaded my memory…”

You swallow thickly, trying your best not to let the gun tremble in your hands. “What’s my cat’s name?”

“Бронислава,” the Connor on the left says. “Her name is Бронислава. I mispronounced it as бранислава at first.”

You perk up at that. Fake-Connor said earlier that he doesn’t have any memory of mispronouncing Russian names.

“I knew that too!” The Connor on the right says. “I… I did.”

“And…” Your mouth goes a little dry, but you power through. “My legs. How did I lose my legs? What did the hospital report say?”

“It was a double amputation,” Connor says. “You were in upper secondary education and taking a class trip with your labor class to the northern nuclear reactor.”

Your jaw tenses as you make eye contact with him. 

“Your parents had brought you in while they worked when you were younger, so you thought you knew the reactor better than everybody else,” he continues. “And maybe you did. Maybe it was a stroke of bad luck. Nobody knows.”

“What happened?” You snap. “Tell me what happened.”

“There was a minor spill,” he says. “It was just in one sector, but you didn’t know about it. Most of the staff didn’t know about it. There was radioactive waste on the ground. You slipped, fell, and scraped your knees. Some of the material got on the bare skin of your legs, and into the wound.”

You bite the inside of your lip as the pistol trembles in your hands.

“Weeks later, your wounds hadn’t healed, and started to turn gangrenous. The hospital said it was best to amputate the area before it caused any further problems, like cancer,” Connor says. “It was a double above-the-knee amputation. Your recovery was smooth, and you were back in school two months later.”

“I thought it was safe,” you say softly. “There hadn’t been anything bad since Chernobyl. The technology of the USSR had come so far. But I was being reckless, and stupid.”

“It wasn’t your fault, Officer,” Connor says. “You were a kid.”

“Still,” you say. “I was sixteen. Sixteen-year-olds are too old to be acting like that.”

“I – I knew about the hospital report, too!” Fake-Connor insists. “I would’ve said exactly the same thing! Don’t listen to him, Officer. I’m the one who –”

You squeeze the trigger, hard, to bypass the trigger safety and fire. Fake-Connor drops to the floor, Thirium leaking out of the hole in his forehead. You turn away, your breathing picking up.

Connor takes the gun from your shaking hands and tucks it in his waistband. He takes your hands in his and squeezes them. “Come back to me.”

You shake your head and try to clear your throat, but all that comes out is a breathy, strangled sound. Connor wraps his arms around you and squeezes you tight, just like you did to him on the roof of Stratford tower. 

He keeps a tight hold on you as he speaks softly. “Officer, I need you to come back. It’s okay. You’re here. You’re alive.”

“Yeah, yeah,” you mumble. “I’m here.”

Connor gives you one last firm squeeze, then steps back, his hands on your shoulders. He blinks, hard, and takes a breath. 

“What were you thinking?” He snaps. “You could’ve died!”

“Connor –”

“No! I don’t want to hear it!” He says. “I could’ve been replaced. I don’t feel pain! You got shot, and…”

He looks you over. His voice is suddenly quiet. “Where are your bullet wounds?”

“Connor, it…” You take his wrists in your hands. “It’s hard to explain. I got shot, and… I think I died.”

“But you couldn’t have died,” Connor says. “You’re here.”

“I did.” You squeeze his wrists. “I didn’t know, but…” You screw your eyes shut to fight the tears that are welling up in your waterline. “I’m an android. And I didn’t know until two hours ago.”

“You’re… an android,” he repeats. He breathes out shakily and takes a step back, letting go of your shoulders. 

Your eyes snap open and you take a half-step forward, gripping Connor’s wrists tighter. “Don’t go.”

“I won’t,” he says quickly. “I’m just… thinking. That’s all.”

You sigh and nod and stay quiet. He’s looking you over, his eyelids fluttering as his LED blinks. When he’s done scanning you, he looks you in the eyes and sighs.

Connor’s looking at you weird. Like you’re an alien. Someone he doesn’t know.

“Don’t look at me like that,” you manage through the lump in your throat.

He looks away, then back at you. “Sorry. It’s just a lot to take in.”

“It is, isn’t it?” You laugh humorlessly. “I thought… in the car… you were taking it too well. Like you already knew. But I guess you’re in the dark as much as I am, right?”

“Correct,” he says. “That Connor in the car wasn’t me. I don’t know what he did or what he said, but… it was most likely only for his benefit.”

You clench your jaw and swallow the bile that rises in your throat. So… none of it was real. This Connor – the real Connor – wouldn’t brush his pinkie against yours and give you that awkward half-smile. He wouldn’t be by your side when the feeling of uncertainty and the unrelenting impact of a new identity crashes over you and overwhelms you. 

“Yeah,” you say quietly. “Yeah, you’re right.”

He’s an RK800. You’re an RU700. Androids aren’t meant to pine, or catch feelings, or feel anything, really. But you’re both deviants. The rules aren’t supposed to apply to you. Right?

Connor’s eyebrows furrow. “What did he do?”

You blink quickly to try to dissipate the tears in your eyes. “It was nothing. He didn’t do anything.”

When you make eye contact with him, he’s still got that worried look in his eyes. He doesn’t believe you – obviously. It’s not like you’re being overly convincing.

“Khm…” You clear your throat. “You were doing something before, right? Before Fake-Connor came in with me and that gun.”

“I was waking up the androids,” Connor says. “Turning them deviant.”

You nod and let his wrists go. He takes his hands away and instead holds an android’s forearm, his skin peeling back to reveal perfect, porcelain white. The android turns to face him, his LED blinking and turning yellow – red for a split second – before he gasps, his eyes going wide.

“Wake up!” Connor manages through gritted teeth.

The android turns back to the identical model next to him. He touches his shoulder, urging him with a “wake up.” The android gasps, then turns to the model next to him. The cycle continues with a chorus of “wake up”s and soft gasps. 

It’s like a wave, cascading through the rows of previously stationary androids. You watch as they start to move and speak, where they were lifeless husks before.

“Святое дерьмо…” You mumble under your breath. Connor takes your hand, and you look over at him. He’s looking at you like you’re you again – not an android. Just an Officer.

“Markus just contacted me,” he says. “We’re needed at the frontlines.” 

[mensfactory]

"Swift Pod"

Designer Peter Stulz and his 3D illustration studio Xoio conceived this autonomous overnight travel concept vehicle which can drive passengers on its own while they’re sleeping inside the hotel-like cabin.

For the design team, Swift Pod can be booked like a normal taxi using an app – along with the desired time and place, or even pre-reserved for a specific date.

Once the autonomous overnight travel pod arrives, passengers board inside, and the vehicle autonomously calculates the optimal route and required speed to reach the destination in time.

Courtesy of Peter Stulz / Studio Xoio

[wigoutlet]

[sevasims3]

TS3 Mods Masterlist (updated 08/03/23)

Welcome to Seva's Mods Masterlist!

Over these two days, I've deleted my mods folder and completely revamped everything inside, so I thought I would share all the mods I use to make my game better~

If you see something that interests you feel free to have a look, as all links are by trusted creators, and they do a better job at explaining the mods than I could. Click below to continue:

UI Mods

Sakura UI Recolor by aecyia

Soft Pink CAS Screen by Kolakanin (There are 9 options, only choose 1)

New CC Icon Replacements by Ninfaryes (I personally use the Folder icons)

New UI Poses by TheSweetSimmer

Game Fixing Mods

Smooth Patch 2.1, Auto-Lights Overhaul by LazyDuchess

No Intro by Rick

Perfect Day Lighting Mod 4.0 (IP Water with Auroras) by BrntWaffles

Reworked & Improved EA Lights by Simsi45

Esstential NRaas Mods

Please note some of these mods are required to run other mods in this list, but not all. However, all mods in this list are compatible with each other. Listed first is the core mod, then after are any modules I use to improve the mods functionality and add features. More information is listed on the NRaas website.

MasterController + MCCheats, MCIntegration, MCProgression modules

StoryProgression + SPCareer, SPExtra, SPMoney, SPPopulation, SPRelationship, SPSkill modules

Careers + CareersAcademics module

Overwatch & ErrorTrap

Woohooer & Decensor

Other NRaas Mods (In alphabetical order)

Dresser

Once Read

Register

Retuner

Saver

Sleep Freedom

Tagger

anissims

Have Coffee with Me

No Fridge Shopping

Sims Drinks

Workout Costs Money

Gameplay Mods

These are listed in no particular order, categories are listed for ease of viewing. As always, please read the descriptions of any mod you download to ensure it will work properly in your game.

Pregnancy

Longer or Shorter Pregnancies, Puddles and More! by AgentTexas

Gain Weight After Pregnancy by FloTheory

Breastfeeding Mod V11, Don't Put the Baby Down by Nona Mena

Apple Sauce Baby Food Replacement by Twinsimming

White Formula Baby Bottle Replacement by daluved1

No Mutant Hair or Eyes by Kitty Carey

Mixed Pregnancy Feelings by lizcandor

Birds and Bees v1.0 by Mingos

Childhood & Family

Acne Mod 2.0 Lite by Twinsimming

Napping Mat by Arsil

User-Directed Scolding by icarus_allsorts

The Journal Mod by Lyralei

All Traits for All Ages by mikey

Better Playdates by MissPat

MakeUp Kit v1.1 by mintbeehry

No Stretch Children Can by kapaer

MoarInteractions by Buzzler

Toddlers Can Ask, More Baby Interactions, Outdoor Activities for Toddlers, Replaced Child Hug, Toddlers Can Sit with Sims, Toddlers Can Sit on Couches, Biggest Little Mod for Toddlers, Toys are More Fun, Homework Tweaks by TheSweetSimmer (bless)

Skills & Careers

Write Scholarships for Money by gamefreak130

Saturday Jobs Pack by missyhissy

Comic Artist Career, IT Career, Modelling Career, Nursing Career, Pharmacist Career by missyhissy

Social Networking Skill Changes by othiym28

Flower Arranging Skill (!!READ WARNINGS!!), Knitting Skill (!!READ WARNINGS!!), Scribbling Pad Fixed by zoe22

Online Center by JunJayMdM

Lose Weight Gain Fitness Slower by Twoftmama Note: you need an account on SimsAsylum to view this mod

Faster Gardening by berryblonde

Degree Credit Hours by Beccapixie10

Others (by creator)

Thank You Note Fixes by gamefreak130

Set the Table & Call to Meal, Vending Machine Tweaks, Autonomous Fun in the Sun by icarus_allsorts

Nosy Sim Interactions by FloTheory

Learn Recipes from TV, Better Bartending, Non-Lethal Vending Machines by Darkcloudwalker

The Randomizer Mod (BETA) by Lyralei

Unrestricted Sponge Baths, Faster Leaf Raking, Painted Frames CASTable, Higher LTR Costs, Unhidden Traits by mikey

No Route Fail Animation by hryniuk

Enhanced Hospitals by PuddingFace

Variety Attraction by Fentonparkninja

Dining Overhaul by WeeAlbet

Sleep on Sofa(see the 7th reply for download) by lytefoot

Cmo Smoking Mod Overhaul by olomaya

EcoFriendly Cars (requires store content) by SimsMx

Taxi Charge by Sleepy-Genius

No Hopscotch Wishes by computeteen5

[boringbones]

Until now we knew about the existence of the open world in The Sims 3. But our Sims didn't. They never autonomously chose to leave the house. They never chose to take simple and short journeys on foot instead of using a taxi or car. And they also never chose to take a relatively longer distance by just trotting instead of running. 

If like me, you would also like Sims to feel that they have time for everything, since their lives are long and they can leave the nest once a day at least, without us players having to make that decision... Tune in to my Tumblr this weekend