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Law and regulation · May 2012

The first licence for a driverless car

Nevada issued the first licence in the United States for testing an autonomous vehicle on public roads.

Why it matters

The right to drive without a person went to a system rather than a driver for the first time, and that forced the law to decide who is liable.

Nevada had been the first state to legislate for autonomous vehicles, and the licence went to a Toyota Prius from the Google project after demonstration drives in Carson City and on the Las Vegas Strip, reviewed by the DMV's autonomous review committee. The plate was red with an infinity symbol, which the DMV director chose to stand for the car of the future. Florida, California and other states followed, each in its own way. The divergence between states remained the main obstacle to deployment for another decade.

Event record

Event date
May 2012
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Sources gathered automatically · September 22, 2026
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evt-0255

The licence was issued in May 2012: the DMV announced it on 7 May, and the state's minutes of 5 June confirm Google already had its plate.

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