First Fully Remote-Controlled Cars Drive on Roads in Europe

Germany’s Vay has become the first company to deploy a vehicle without a human being inside on a European public road, a milestone the startup says paves the way for a remote-controlled mobility service within months.

Vay is pitching “teledriving,” which involving humans remote-controlling autos from physical steering stations miles away, as an intermediate step to full autonomy. Expectations of an imminent rollout of a large number of robocars have deflated even after investors have bet some $100 billion on the technology.