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Google Will Pay You to Drive Around in Its Self-Driving Cars

The Web giant is looking to hire "vehicle safety specialists" in Arizona to be part of its self-driving car project.

 & Angela Moscaritolo Managing Editor, Consumer Electronics

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Calling all college graduates in Arizona with a clean driving record and no criminal history: Google wants your help.

Nextcar Bug artThe Web giant is looking to hire "vehicle safety specialists" in the state to be part of its self-driving car project. As per the job description, those selected will be tasked with driving an autonomous vehicle around the state for six to eight hours per day, five days per week, collecting data for Google's engineering team. Drivers will earn $20 per hour, according to The Arizona Republic.

"Test drivers play an important role in developing our self-driving technology," Brian Torcellini, head of operations for Google's Self-Driving Car testing program, told the paper. "They give our engineers feedback about how our cars are driving and interacting with others on the road, and can take control of the vehicle if needed."

He added that Google has hired people from all walks to life for the role in the past — from school teachers to welders.

"In general, they need to be excellent drivers who pay really close attention to the road and can predict the social aspects of driving," Torcellini said, according to the report. "Local drivers will be great for testing in the Phoenix area because they know the roads and local driving norms better."

Vehicle safety specialists will also need to be constantly monitoring software systems, provide written and oral feedback, complete daily reports, and be open to travel up to a month at a time. Interested individuals can submit their resume here.

The move to expand its team comes after Google in April selected the Phoenix metro area as the next location for its self-driving car testing program. It's also testing them in Google's hometown of Mountain View, Calif., as well as Austin, and Washington state.

Meanwhile, those in the UK also have a chance to drive around in autonomous vehicles as part of the £8 million GATEway (Greenwich Automated Transport Environment) project. Project organizers are looking for volunteers willing to ride a driverless shuttle around Greenwich this summer and offer up their thoughts about the experience.

About Our Expert

Angela Moscaritolo

Angela Moscaritolo

Managing Editor, Consumer Electronics

My Experience

I'm PCMag's managing editor for consumer electronics, overseeing an experienced team of analysts covering smart home, home entertainment, wearables, fitness and health tech, and various other product categories. I have been with PCMag for more than 10 years, and in that time have written more than 6,000 articles and reviews for the site. I previously served as an analyst focused on smart home and wearable devices, and before that I was a reporter covering consumer tech news. I'm also a yoga instructor, and have been actively teaching group and private classes for nearly a decade. 

Prior to joining PCMag, I was a reporter for SC Magazine, focusing on hackers and computer security. I earned a BS in journalism from West Virginia University, and started my career writing for newspapers in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia.

The Technology I Use

My little Florida beach bungalow is brimming with smart home tech. I have a smart speaker or display in every room, allowing me to control other connected devices by voice. The Nest Hub on my bedside table lets me set wake-up alarms, control my smart light bulbs, and set the temperature on my smart thermostat. I use the Amazon Echo Show 8 on my kitchen counter to browse recipes, reorder protein powder, check the weather, and watch the news while I do dishes. 

Because I suffer from allergies, air purifiers are essential. My favorite model is the Dyson Purifier Cool TP07, which doubles as a fan and continuously sends indoor pollution data to its companion mobile app. 

My pitbull Bradley sheds, so a good robot vacuum is a must. I currently use a premium Ecovacs Deebot that can both vacuum and mop, empty its own dustbin, and wash its own mop cloth. 

For fitness, I like to mix up my routine with cycling, indoor rowing, running, and strength training in addition to yoga. I take classes on the Tonal 2 smart strength training machine, I row indoors on an Aviron machine, and track my beach runs with an Apple Watch while listening to music on my Apple AirPods Pro. On the weekends, I love riding e-bikes like the rugged, beach-friendly Aventon Aventure for fun and fitness.

My job involves a lot of virtual meetings, so a quality webcam, microphone, and ring light are important. I use the Jabra PanaCast 20 webcam, the Elgato Wave: 3 microphone, and a Yesker tripod ring light. 

As for my preferred phone platform, I'm an iPhone person, but I've also extensively used Android for product testing.

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