Uber Refuses to Stop Self-Driving in SF, Setting Up a Legal Showdown

Uber will continue providing people with rides aboard its San Francisco fleet of self-driving cars, its technical chief said today, defying state regulators who have told the startup to put the cars in park. The intransigent move is sure to bring a rebuke from lawmakers who are threatening to sue. The legal fight started Wednesday morning when the ridesharing giant opened its fleet of autonomous Volvos to riders throughout the city. It did so without applying for a permit to test autonomous technology, arguing that California regulations governing the tech apply only to vehicles that don't require a human supervisor. There is always someone at the wheel of an autonomous Uber.