Uber has brought five of its autonomous test vehicles back to the streets of San Francisco , but the ride - hailing company insists it is not to use its self - driving systems . Instead , the cars will be mapping the environment , and will have drivers at the controls at all times . An Uber spokesperson told CNet, "These cars are being used for Uber's mapping purposes only. The move follows Uber 's decision to move its self - driving tests to Arizona last month , after local authorities in San Francisco said the company needed permits to conduct autonomous tests .
Uber has brought five of its autonomous test vehicles back to the streets of San Francisco , but the ride - hailing company insists it is not to use its self - driving systems . Instead , the cars will be mapping the environment , and will have drivers at the controls at all times . The move follows Uber 's decision to move its self - driving tests to Arizona last month , after local authorities in San Francisco said the company needed permits to conduct autonomous tests .