Introducing Uber ATG’s Self-Driving Safety & Responsibility Board

By: Chan Lieu, Sr. Safety Program Analyst

Uber ATG is pleased to announce the creation of our Self-Driving Safety and Responsibility Advisory (SARA) Board. The SARA Board is an independent panel of safety experts charged with reviewing, advising, and suggesting changes to Uber ATG’s self-driving enterprise, including inputs on organizational goals and priorities. We believe that this panel of outside experts will offer valuable independent advice as Uber ATG leads the safe development and deployment of self-driving technology on the Uber platform.

The SARA Board consists of recognized experts in a variety of relevant fields, drawing from aviation safety, insurance, emergency/trauma medicine, automotive safety, and academia. The inaugural SARA Board members include:

• George Snyder, President of GHS Aviation Safety Specialists (Board Chair)
• Dr. Jeffrey Runge, former NHTSA Administrator (Board Vice-Chair)
• David Carbaugh, former test pilot and Chief Pilot Flight Operations Safety at Boeing (Board Secretary)
• Shailen Bhatt, President of Intelligent Transportation Society of America
• Adrian Lund, former President of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety
• Dr. Victoria Chibuogu Nneji, Lead Engineer & Innovation Strategist at Edge Case Research and Robotics Lecturing Fellow at Duke University

The SARA Board members bring their wide range of expertise in various industries and modes of transportation and lend their diverse experiences and perspectives to advising Uber ATG. Mr. Snyder will serve as Board Chair, with Dr. Runge serving as Vice-Chair, and Mr. Carbaugh serving as Secretary. All SARA Board members will serve two-year terms and positions, rotating annually.

The SARA Board’s role will be to identify and suggest improvements to the way Uber ATG develops self-driving technology and brings fully self-driving vehicles to market. The Board will identify and suggest recommendations on:

• Internal policies, culture, operational procedures, and processes;
• Potential risks and corresponding follow-up actions;
• Ways to increase public understanding and trust in self-driving vehicles;
• Uber ATG’s approach to engaging in industry-wide conversation around relevant topics such as fully driverless operations and responsibility.

The Board recently held its first in-person meeting and will continue to meet quarterly.