Boris Sofman: Waymo, Cozmo, Self-Driving Cars, and the Future of Robotics | Lex Fridman Podcast #241

Boris Sofman is the Senior Director Of Engineering and Head of Trucking at Waymo, formerly the Google Self-Driving Car project. He was also the CEO and co-founder of Anki, a home robotics company. Please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors: - LMNT: https://drinkLMNT.com/lex to get free sample pack - Athletic Greens: https://athleticgreens.com/lex and use code LEX to get 1 month of fish oil - ROKA: https://roka.com/ and use code LEX to get 20% off your first order - Indeed: https://indeed.com/lex to get $75 credit - BetterHelp: https://betterhelp.com/lex to get 10% off EPISODE LINKS: Boris's Twitter: https://twitter.com/bsofman Boris's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bsofman Waymo's Twitter: https://twitter.com/waymo Waymo's YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/waymo Waymo's Website: https://waymo.com/ PODCAST INFO: Podcast website: https://lexfridman.com/podcast Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2lwqZIr Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8 RSS: https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/ Full episodes playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrAXtmErZgOdP_8GztsuKi9nrraNbKKp4 Clips playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrAXtmErZgOeciFP3CBCIEElOJeitOr41 OUTLINE: 0:00 - Introduction 1:08 - Robots in science fiction 6:49 - Cozmo 32:04 - AI companions 38:59 - Anki 1:04:33 - Waymo Via 1:36:10 - Sensor suites for long haul trucking 1:46:06 - Machine learning 2:04:03 - Waymo vs Tesla 2:14:38 - Safety and risk management 2:23:42 - Societal effects of automation 2:34:47 - Amazon Astro 2:39:12 - Challenges of the robotics industry 2:43:39 - Humanoid robotics 2:50:42 - Advice for getting a PhD in robotics 2:58:13 - Advice for robotics startups 3:09:19 - Advice for students SOCIAL: - Twitter: https://twitter.com/lexfridman - LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lexfridman - Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lexfridman - Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lexfridman - Medium: https://medium.com/@lexfridman - Reddit: https://reddit.com/r/lexfridman - Support on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/lexfridman