The scuffle around warning devices and where and how they get placed is one of several regulatory hurdles that autonomous vehicle companies must jump in order to remain compliant with federal safety standards, many of which are designed for manual human controls. For example, today, AV companies need to request an exemption to deploy and mass produce vehicles built without things like steering wheels or pedals, though Tesla CEO Elon Musk has urged the incoming Trump administration to do away with those rules as he hopes to deploy a large fleet of such robotaxis in the coming years.

Aurora also appears hopeful that the Trump administration will be more favorable to the AV industry. At least, that’s the sentiment portrayed in a recent blog post from Aurora President Ossa Fisher that nods to the incoming “hardworking, passionate transportation leaders ready to support innovation and save lives.”