Austin News Feed

Austin news feed: Sour Patch Kids moves into East Austin, but it ain't so sweet for neighbors

Editor's note: Over the course of a week, we come across dozens of newsy tidbits and interesting links that we want to share with you. For this weekly roundup, we gathered all the news we found sour, juicy and worth sharing.

1. Sour Patch Kids candy has leased a house in East Austin for musicians. This is real life. The famous candy brand has taken over a house on Waller Street to be used as a free hostel for musicians for an entire year — but neighbors aren't too excited about it.

2. Did anyone on Tinder meet this young woman during SXSW? What could have been love was actually a promotional ploy for the science fiction movie Ex Machina.

3. University of Texas athletes are getting "digital bodyguards." UT has paired up with MyForce, a mobile bodyguard service app, to provide emergency services for student athletes.

4. Josh Watkins leaves Chavez project before it even begins. Just last month the former executive chef of The Carillon joined forces with the Radisson to rebrand Chavez, but reps say they've already parted ways.

5. Meet behind-the-scenes stars from some of Austin's most well-known restaurants and chefs. Zagat pulled the curtain back on the Austin dining scene to chat with these industry darlings.

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Self-driving Roller Coaster

More self-driving cars expected to roll out in Austin for 2025

Photo courtesy of Waymo via KVUE

Various brands offering self-driving cars are on-and-off in Austin.

Expect to see more self-driving rideshare vehicles, also known as robotaxis, on Austin roads next year.

Robotaxi company Waymo, which you may have already seen on Austin's roads, is partnering with Uber. At some point next year, customers will be able to use the Uber app to call a self-driving ride.

Austin-based company Avride is in the testing phase and plans to roll out its robotaxis next year.

Currently, Volkswagen ADMT and Amazon's Zoox are in the testing phase in Austin, while Hyundai's Motional is in the mapping phase.

Last year, robotaxi company Cruise paused operations in Austin after the California Department of Motor Vehicles revoked the company's permits to operate driverless vehicles in the state. And last week, General Motors said it would no longer fund the company because of the time and resources needed.

This way of getting around has come with its safety concerns and issues. The city is tracking those concerns. According to the Transportation Department, the problems span from blocking the roads and parking in front of people's homes for weeks with lights beaming through their windows, to actual wrecks.

Since July 2023, robotaxis have been involved in 75 incidents. Only 21 of those incidents happened in 2024. It's important to note that Cruise has not been operating in Austin this year.

Since July 2023, driverless rideshare vehicles have been involved in 22 near collisions, eight collisions and seven instances where driverless taxis ignored directions from the Austin Police Department (APD).

According to the data, at least four of those Austin police incidents happened in recent months. The issues varied from driving through police checkpoints, to malfunctioning and getting stuck at an APD road closure near pedestrians, causing safety concerns.

A Waymo spokesperson said their vehicles have gesture recognition capabilities, which they've been training APD officers on using.

As the report shows, sometimes it does not work and Waymo said it is working to improve that. The spokesperson said that as of just last week, Waymo's First Responder Program has been independently verified by TÜV SÜD, making Waymo the first autonomous vehicle (AV) company to receive third-party validation for our emergency response protocols. They also said the data to date indicates the Waymo Driver is already reducing traffic injuries and fatalities in the places where the company currently operates.

Read the full story and watch the video at KVUE.com.

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