Californians took more than 1.2 million rides in commercial self-driving cars in December, a 500% increase in 19 months, according to the Public Utilities Commission.

The autonomous vehicle market, which grew from fewer than 200,000 rides statewide in May 2024, was outlined at a conference on the future of the technology in San Francisco on Friday.

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Alise is a general assignment reporter with a focus on covering government, elections, housing, crime, courts and entertainment in San Francisco and on the Peninsula. Alise is a Bay Area native from San Carlos. She studied history at University of California, Santa Cruz and first started journalism at Skyline College’s school newspaper in San Bruno. She has interned for Bay City News and for Eesti Rahvusringhääling, or Estonian Public Broadcasting. She has covered everything from the removal of former San Mateo County Sheriff Christina Corpus to the divisive battle over the Great Highway on San Francisco’s west side. Please send her any tips.