Up to 70% of the cost of maintaining a passenger-boat fleet comes from paying captains. In the interest of economics and sustainability, the Finland-based Callboats has developed the world’s first AI-powered autonomous boat, which is all-electric and partly charged by solar energy. Pending regulatory approval, the 30-passenger 10-L water taxi will run between Helsinki and a nearby archipelago with only one crew member on board (just in case anything goes awry). Users will be able to hail the vehicle, which can reach a top speed of 12 knots (nearly 14 m.p.h.), via a mobile app.
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