Photo: Volvo
Uber and Volvo have tied the knot with a partnership that focuses on developing self-driving cars.
The ride-sharing giant partnered with the safety-oriented brand from Sweden to pursue a common goal of autonomous vehicle development. As you already know, Uber dreams of a day when they will have fleets of self-driving cars across the world, and it needs the assistance of automakers to make that happen, because Uber does not want to build cars.
The plan will include a combined budget of $300 million, and has the end goal of developing autonomous vehicles that can operate without a driver. Volvo will manufacture the base for each of those cars, and Uber will then buy each car made. Before that becomes a reality, the two companies will invest in the development of autonomous driving technology.
Once the project is concluded, Volvo will use the resulting technology for consumer cars, while Uber will enjoy the use of self-driving Volvo vehicles. The two partners view the collaboration as a long-term partnership, so we are bound to hear more about this story as it develops over the years.
The base vehicle that will be used by the two partners is built on Volvo’s Scalable Product Architecture, a platform also known as SPA. It was launched with the second-generation XC90 SUV, but it is also present on the corresponding S90 and V90 models.
Volvo invested over $11 billion in a global program that had this platform as one of its first results. From the start, Volvo’s SPA Platform has been envisioned for autonomous driving capabilities, as well as maximum possible safety in the unfortunate case of a crash.
As Bloomberg notes, the ride-sharing giant will test some prototypes in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. These vehicles are modified Volvo XC90 SUVs, fitted with additional sensors, along with Uber branding. Each of the described cars mentioned in this paragraph will have Uber engineers behind the wheel as a safety precaution.
The plan will include a combined budget of $300 million, and has the end goal of developing autonomous vehicles that can operate without a driver. Volvo will manufacture the base for each of those cars, and Uber will then buy each car made. Before that becomes a reality, the two companies will invest in the development of autonomous driving technology.
Once the project is concluded, Volvo will use the resulting technology for consumer cars, while Uber will enjoy the use of self-driving Volvo vehicles. The two partners view the collaboration as a long-term partnership, so we are bound to hear more about this story as it develops over the years.
The base vehicle that will be used by the two partners is built on Volvo’s Scalable Product Architecture, a platform also known as SPA. It was launched with the second-generation XC90 SUV, but it is also present on the corresponding S90 and V90 models.
Volvo invested over $11 billion in a global program that had this platform as one of its first results. From the start, Volvo’s SPA Platform has been envisioned for autonomous driving capabilities, as well as maximum possible safety in the unfortunate case of a crash.
As Bloomberg notes, the ride-sharing giant will test some prototypes in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. These vehicles are modified Volvo XC90 SUVs, fitted with additional sensors, along with Uber branding. Each of the described cars mentioned in this paragraph will have Uber engineers behind the wheel as a safety precaution.
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