The automotive industry lacks a standardised safety test for autonomous vehicles equivalent to the driver's licensing requirements for humans, leaving manufacturers largely responsible for determining when their own self-driving technology is safe enough for deployment. This week, the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) took a significant step toward addressing this gap by partnering with the Society of Automotive Engineers to launch ASCEND, a government-industry consortium focused on developing data-driven performance standards for autonomous driving systems.

Current federal motor vehicle safety standards were not designed for next-generation autonomous vehicles such as Tesla's Cybercab and Zoox's robotaxi, which lack traditional equipment like steering wheels, pedals, and mirrors. The NHTSA aims to establish competency standards that balance safety with innovation and eliminate the current patchwork of inconsistent state and local regulations. However, no timeline has been announced for when the consortium will produce these standards, leaving the autonomous vehicle industry in a period of regulatory uncertainty as companies like May Mobility prepare to go public.