Austin News Feed

Austin news feed: Micklethwait's brisket cake, Texas home values mapped and more

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 gather all the news we found meaty, manly and full of holiday joy.

1. Pass me a slice of thick, juicy ... brisket cake. To celebrate its second birthday, Micklethwait Craft Meats made a red velvet brisket cake with — get this — actual brisket.

2. Mettle designs a cocktail aimed towards men (but no one knows why). The East Austin bistro offers the Blackberry Resolution, a so-called "manly" mix of gin, citrus, blackberry syrup, cuvée and sage leaf. Sounds delicious, but shouldn't a man should order whatever cocktail he pleases, be it "manly" or not?

3. Play with an interactive map of Texas home value prices. Real estate speculation has never been so fun! Austin Business Journal put together an interactive map of fluctuating home value prices around the state.

4. Alamo Drafthouse announces two new locations. Brace yourselves, Corpus Christi and Chandler. The beloved Austin-based chain officially announced the location of its newest film havens: one in South Texas and the other in Arizona. This was a busy week for the Drafthouse between announcing new spots and locking down show times for the controversial film, The Interview.

5. Austin server bakes treats for local hospices every week. In this heartwarming story, Uchiko server Sharon Bright talks to the Austin American-Statesman about how she has been delivering homemade baked goods to Austin-area hospices every week since her dad passed away in 2010. She also shared a recipe for Christmas-themed brownies.

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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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