The next Waymo vehicle you’ll see on city streets will utilize more custom robotaxi hardware than the previous ones (Jaguar I-Pace and Chrysler Pacifica). Waymo today unveiled its 6th-generation hardware and sensor suite.

Waymo’s 6th generation hardware features 13 cameras, four lidar and six radar sensors, as well as an “array of external audio receivers (EARs)” and more processing power that was previously housed in the trunk.

With improved all-round visibility with camera radar and an even more powerful lidar system, our 6th generation sensor suite can safely handle the myriad events it may encounter in an even greater range of different road conditions.

The previous generation (on the Jaguar I-Pace) featured 29 cameras, five lidar and six radar sensors, with the company attributing the reduction to “advances in sensor technology and strategic placement.” The various protruding casings around the cars will still be noticeable, but to a lesser extent.

The new sensor unit is “optimized for greater performance at significantly reduced cost, without compromising safety.” It allows the vehicle to see up to 500 meters, with “overlapping fields of view.” In particular, Waymo has a “360-degree view of the world from three complementary sensor modalities.”

Waymo not only operates during the day and at night, but also offers the ability to operate even in harsher weather conditions.

So far, the sixth-generation sensors have “thousands of miles of real-world driving experience” and “millions more” of simulation testing. Waymo says it is “on track to operate without a human at the wheel in about half the time.”

This knowledge sharing will dramatically reduce the miles required to train and validate the underlying base models that autonomously control our vehicles, and accelerate and improve the development of each new generation of Waymo drivers.