Photo: FCA/WAYMO
Ride-hailing companies are extremely interested in cars that can drive themselves, and it looks like Uber is no longer the only "player" in this field.
The latest entry comes from Lyft, which has signed a partnership with Waymo. The second company is already testing self-driving cars on public roads, and they operate with technology developed by Google. In a way, the company with the mustache logo came later than Uber in this field of driverless ride-hailing, but it may have a shot at supremacy due to Google’s technology.
Apparently, the deal between Waymo and Lyft was signed for some time, but the company insiders who had revealed it under cover of anonymity could not reveal details about it until both parties were ready to make it official.
Eventually, both companies told representatives of the New York Times that they had signed a partnership regarding self-driving cars. The deal will involve multiple pilot projects that will attempt to bring this technology into the mainstream.
Lyft already has a ride-hailing app with plenty of users on hand, and Waymo has the technology, but needed a customer base willing to try new things.
An ongoing partnership with General Motors (an investor in Lyft) has led to a deal that will involve self-driving Chevrolet Bolt models in the next few years.
At this point, it is unclear if Waymo will use the GM cars or its existing fleet of Chrysler Pacifica Hybrids under its partnership with Fiat Chrysler Automobiles. The latter is not an exclusive deal, and the autonomous car business is already discussing with other potential partners.
It is fair to note that Waymo is already experimenting with an autonomous car program in some parts of Phoenix, Arizona.
The partnership would bring Google’s driverless cars to new riders, who may not have been in the area served in the limited-access deal that Waymo rolled out in the state.
Eventually, driverless cars will probably be able to replace all human drivers of ride-hailing services like Uber and Lyft, but the conclusion leaves us with a few questions.
First of all, we are curious what will taxi drivers have against the robots that will operate the driverless ride-hailing cars, which would have lower costs than using humans who need to eat, sleep, and earn money for their efforts.
Secondly, what will happen to the humans who drive people with either Uber or Lyft once the apps switch to driverless cars? At this point, nobody knows if robots will bring an end to cab drivers, the ride-hailing part of the “sharing economy,” or to none of the above.
Apparently, the deal between Waymo and Lyft was signed for some time, but the company insiders who had revealed it under cover of anonymity could not reveal details about it until both parties were ready to make it official.
Eventually, both companies told representatives of the New York Times that they had signed a partnership regarding self-driving cars. The deal will involve multiple pilot projects that will attempt to bring this technology into the mainstream.
Lyft already has a ride-hailing app with plenty of users on hand, and Waymo has the technology, but needed a customer base willing to try new things.
An ongoing partnership with General Motors (an investor in Lyft) has led to a deal that will involve self-driving Chevrolet Bolt models in the next few years.
At this point, it is unclear if Waymo will use the GM cars or its existing fleet of Chrysler Pacifica Hybrids under its partnership with Fiat Chrysler Automobiles. The latter is not an exclusive deal, and the autonomous car business is already discussing with other potential partners.
It is fair to note that Waymo is already experimenting with an autonomous car program in some parts of Phoenix, Arizona.
The partnership would bring Google’s driverless cars to new riders, who may not have been in the area served in the limited-access deal that Waymo rolled out in the state.
Eventually, driverless cars will probably be able to replace all human drivers of ride-hailing services like Uber and Lyft, but the conclusion leaves us with a few questions.
First of all, we are curious what will taxi drivers have against the robots that will operate the driverless ride-hailing cars, which would have lower costs than using humans who need to eat, sleep, and earn money for their efforts.
Secondly, what will happen to the humans who drive people with either Uber or Lyft once the apps switch to driverless cars? At this point, nobody knows if robots will bring an end to cab drivers, the ride-hailing part of the “sharing economy,” or to none of the above.
Google News