Olli is the 3D-printed, totally autonomous electric shuttle bus we’ve all been waiting for

By Luke Dormehl Updated June 20, 2016

A 3D-printed, autonomous, electric, recyclable shuttle bus sounds like the kind of idea that would emerge during a tech startup brainstorming session if you wrote down every single buzzword anyone called out.

In fact, it’s a genuine product — dubbed “Olli” — created by Arizona-based automaker Local Motors and powered by IBM Watson’s cognitive learning car technology, IBM Watson Internet of Things (IoT) for Automotive. Packed with more than 30 sensors and capable of carrying up to 12 people, Olli is currently running on local public roads in Washington DC, and will expand to Miami-Dade County and Las Vegas later this year.

“Olli offers a smart, safe and sustainable transportation solution that is long overdue,” says Local Motors CEO and co-founder John B. Rogers. “Olli with Watson acts as our entry into the world of self-driving vehicles, something we’ve been quietly working on with our co-creative community for the past year. We are now ready to accelerate the adoption of this technology and apply it to nearly every vehicle in our current portfolio and those in the very near future.”

1 of 5

local motors olli driverless bus nh

local motors olli driverless bus at phoenix lm 2

local motors olli driverless bus rc8003

local motors olli driverless bus at phoenix lm 3

local motors olli driverless bus interior

As exciting as the present is for Olli, it’s the future that holds the most promise for Local Motors. “We sincerely believe that Local Motors needs to be on the cutting-edge of any and every vehicle technology that’s out there,” Jacqueline Keidel, a spokeswoman for Local Motors tells Digital Trends. “By making vehicles in small batches and having micro factories around the world, we’re not only able to be an agile company that can introduce the latest technologies available, but also cater [our technologies] to specific regions and what those regions need.”

Because of Olli’s micro factories, Jacqueline says, the vehicles Local Motors produces can literally be tweaked and improved every time a new unit is put together. Even more impressively, it means that an Olli created for a sunny part of the U.S. could be made to rely on solar power, while an Olli built for a less sunny area could be powered by other electric vehicle technologies.

Suddenly public transport commutes to work just got a whole lot more exciting!

Topics

Contributor

I'm a UK-based tech writer covering Cool Tech at Digital Trends. I've also written for Fast Company, Wired, the Guardian…

Outdoors

The best portable power stations

EcoFlow DELTA 2 on table at campsite for quick charging.

Affordable and efficient portable power is a necessity these days, keeping our electronic devices operational while on the go. But there are literally dozens of options to choose from, making it abundantly difficult to decide which mobile charging solution is best for you. We've sorted through countless portable power options and came up with six of the best portable power stations to keep your smartphones, tablets, laptops, and other gadgets functioning while living off the grid.
The best overall: Jackery Explorer 1000

Jackery has been a mainstay in the portable power market for several years, and today, the company continues to set the standard. With three AC outlets, two USB-A, and two USB-C plugs, you'll have plenty of options for keeping your gadgets charged.

Emerging Tech

CES 2023: HD Hyundai’s Avikus is an A.I. for autonomous boat and marine navigation

Demonstration of NeuBoat level 2 autonomous navigation system at the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show

This content was produced in partnership with HD Hyundai.
Autonomous vehicle navigation technology is certainly nothing new and has been in the works for the better part of a decade at this point. But one of the most common forms we see and hear about is the type used to control steering in road-based vehicles. That's not the only place where technology can make a huge difference. Autonomous driving systems can offer incredible benefits to boats and marine vehicles, too, which is precisely why HD Hyundai has unveiled its Avikus AI technology -- for marine and watercraft vehicles.

More recently, HD Hyundai participated in the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show, to demo its NeuBoat level 2 autonomous navigation system for recreational boats. The name mashes together the words "neuron" and "boat" and is quite fitting since the Avikus' A.I. navigation tech is a core component of the solution, it will handle self-recognition, real-time decisions, and controls when on the water. Of course, there are a lot of things happening behind the scenes with HD Hyundai's autonomous navigation solution, which we'll dive into below -- HD Hyundai will also be introducing more about the tech at CES 2023.

Computing

This AI cloned my voice using just three minutes of audio

acapela group voice cloning ad

There's a scene in Mission Impossible 3 that you might recall. In it, our hero Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) tackles the movie's villain, holds him at gunpoint, and forces him to read a bizarre series of sentences aloud.

"The pleasure of Busby's company is what I most enjoy," he reluctantly reads. "He put a tack on Miss Yancy's chair, and she called him a horrible boy. At the end of the month, he was flinging two kittens across the width of the room ..."