Writing
Current work, published pieces with links, and a deep archive of earlier commentary.
Current arguments
Recent work on urban technology and Physical AI — each piece links out to the published article, op-ed, or research program behind it.
Lead thesis · Working thesis
Thesis
Intelligence is leaving the screen and entering the street. Whether embodied AI works will be decided by curbs, loading docks, permits, and data agreements — not by benchmarks.
The argument: the decisive constraints on embodied intelligence are municipal — curb access, data agreements, permitting, insurance, and staff capacity. Model quality is necessary and nowhere near sufficient.
San Francisco Chronicle · 2026
Op-edAutonomous vehicles draw the scrutiny, but the lethal status quo on San Francisco's streets is human driving — an op-ed on where the safety conversation should actually start.
The Driverless Digest · 2026
SubstackUber built its case against car ownership, then repositioned when driverless cars threatened the model — a look at the contradictions in platform strategy as automation arrives.
Essay
From the bookThe street is the largest public space most cities own. Treated only as a conduit for vehicles, it forfeits its value as commerce, civic life, and access — the argument at the center of End of the Road.
Research theme
OngoingReadiness is not a procurement question. It is data, staffing, legal authority, curb policy, and the political capacity to run a pilot that might fail — the basis of the Urban CCAM / Physical AI readiness assessment work.
Selected writing
Published works. More available upon request.
Futures of Work
Planetizen
From the archive
456 posts, interviews, and field notes from 2011 onward — now hosted here, searchable by year and keyword.
Apr 5, 2024
“Societally, we have to accept that driving is a privilege,” said William Riggs, a transit and urban-development expert at the University of San Francisco. “It’s also a privilege that comes with costs in terms of emissions, particulates from tires and things like that.” SF Standard https://www.sfexaminer.com/news/trans
Mar 7, 2024
"We’re talking about hundreds of thousands of new people living in the city. Now how are we going to do that? We have to start planning now how we invest in our infrastructure," William Riggs on ABC News https://abc7news.com/san-francisco-affordable-housing-bond-homes-voters/14501653/
Feb 8, 2024
https://www.youtube.com/live/2us7GkgP1Fo?si=s49nWx80WlIxcDt7
Dec 9, 2023
Still, the potential of the technology is significant. William Riggs, a Professor at University of San Francisco, who is an expert of new mobility and future of urban transportation says, "It could supplement the poor public transportation system in the US and help the disabled people get around." Driverless taxi accid
Dec 3, 2023
Meanwhile, Barra said Cruise would be a key money generator for GM, making up to $50 billion in annual revenue by 2030—even though the company was burning through $2 billion a year at the time. (Barra also suggested that GM’s revenue would double to $280 billion in that timeframe.) Those claims were not entirely unfoun
Oct 30, 2023
“We see lots of acceptance and lots of comfort in riding in these vehicles,” said Billy Riggs, a professor of engineering and management at the University of San Francisco. He said autonomous vehicles could make cities more livable, equitable and safe. Cruise and its competitor Waymo say their data shows these cars per
Aug 19, 2023
https://www.theatlantic.com/newsletters/archive/2023/08/robotaxis-self-driving-cars-san-francisco/675170/
May 30, 2023
“AVs are providing an opportunity to develop a transportation system that treats accessibility as a guiding principle, not as an afterthought,” says William Riggs, Programme Director and Associate Professor at the University of San Francisco in a new whitepaper produced by Cities Today Studio in partnership with May Mo
Mar 5, 2023
Getting the business model right is going to be "crucial" and promises to be "even harder than the technology", says William Riggs, an associate professor at the University of San Francisco School of Management who leads its Autonomous Vehicles and the City Initiative. Robotaxi tech improves but can they make money? BB