© Fresco News / Mark Beach / Handout via Reuters / ReutersA self-driven Volvo SUV owned and operated by Uber Technologies Inc. is flipped on its side after a collision in Tempe, Arizona, U.S. on March 24, 2017.
The Volvo SUV was making a left turn at an intersection in Arizona, where Uber has been trialing autonomous vehicles, on Friday when another car "failed to yield" and struck it, according to police.
"There was a person behind the wheel [of the self-driving car]. It is uncertain at this time if they were controlling the vehicle at the time of the collision," said officer Josie Montenegro.
A picture of the badly damaged vehicle was posted online and verified by an Uber spokeswoman who confirmed the incident to Bloomberg. There were two operators sitting in the front of the Uber vehicle at the time of the collision, but no passengers, and no injuries were reported.
Uber said they are investigating the incident and have pulled their self-driving vehicles off the road in all three states where they are testing the technology - Arizona, Pennsylvania, and California - as a precaution.
The accident rounds out a tumultuous week for the company. On Monday, former Uber President Jeff Jones cited irreparable differences as the reason behind his shock decision to leave the role after only six months.
"The beliefs and approach to leadership that have guided my career are inconsistent with what I saw and experienced at Uber, and I can no longer continue as president of the ride sharing business," Jones said in a statement released on Monday.
Eventually automations started spreading , well, like a disease. There's nothing as sophisticated, as effective in every day decision making,
as the well-trained, EXPERIENCED, human mind. I was once discussing the issue of car accidents with a taxi driver and we agreed that
a good driver will not get involved into a car accident with another good driver. Either of the two will make a move, even the last minute,
and avoid the crash.
Machines, contrary to what most people believe, are not full proof either. We are machines, biological ones, and we malfunction all the time. The only difference is that we have feelings.
So concluding, you can trust automations up to a certain point, but this world hasn't an auto run mode so humans should always have the final word. Otherwise we 'll end up literally sc***ing up everything.