Why the age of collaborative self-driving cars is here: Waymo and Lyft team up
Michael Spencer
A.I. Writer, researcher and curator - full-time Newsletter publication manager.
What could get under Uber's skin more than a #deleteuber campaign? Its arch rivals teaming up. Read on.
That's exactly what has happend in the latest plot twist of accelerated (or should we say stalled?) future of autonomous vehicles mid way in 2017. #Way2Lyft Alphabet!
What's nearer than the race to artificial intelligence? The race to self-driving vehicles which is feeling more imminent than ever.
Two of Silicon Valley's prominent players are joining forces; in a bid to out-do the field.
May the Best Car Win
Waymo is Google's self-driving car unit the same one with a lawsuit vs. Uber (it's complicated); and Lyft is the ride-hailing company that many young Millennials have turned to; when Uber's zealous ways hit the PR proverbial fan the last few months.
They will join forces with pilot projects and product dev efforts; reported the New York Times first, followed by Recode and Business Insider.
After Uber and Didi; Lyft is no Slouch
Lyft is a rising brand after a fresh $500 million round of funding, bringing its post-money valuation to $7.5 billion.
Everyone knows AVs are going to be huge and the innovation around the sector is setting up key partnerships between tech companies and auto-makers like the world has never seen before.
New Age of Partnerships Lyfts Us Into Smarter City Era
We are truly on the heels of a multibillion dollar industry where the car becomes a data center on wheels.
Tech companies + automakers + manufacturing components = the future of cars
“We’re looking forward to working with Lyft to explore new self-driving products that will make our roads safer and transportation more accessible. Lyft’s vision and commitment to improving the way cities move will help Waymo’s self-driving technology reach more people, in more places,” Waymo
Automakers are Racing to the Autonomous Vehicle
The exponential future is a race to artificial intelligence embedded in legacy tech; and it's one of the most exciting revolutions in the automotive sector ever.
- Ford announced a $1 billion investment in Argo AI, an artificial intelligence founded by former Google and Uber employees.
- GM invested $500 million in Lyft and has announced that it would test self-driving electric taxis on public roads within a year. It bought Cruise Automation for about $1 billion.
- Volvo started a pilot project to put autonomous SUVs in the hands of residents in Gothenburg, Sweden.
- Tesla said its cars would eventually come equipped to be fully autonomous.
- Honda is developing what it calls an “emotion engine,” which will learn from the driver’s judgments behind the wheel to make future choices and recommendations.
- Not to be outdone, Mercedes-Benz to Audi, BMW and Hyundai — have begun developing or forming partnerships around self-driving technology.
Meanwhile in the tech space; Uber, Waymo (Alphabet), Baidu and even Apple are surely in the hunt. (Credit: New York Times)
The Awkward Addendum You Probably Already Know
The evidence Uber "plays dirty" has sent the media into a tailspin in 2017. While Waymo itself is suing Uber, claiming a key executive stole proprietary self-driving tech from Waymo and used it to develop key components of Uber's self-driving systems.
While Uber dealt with allegations of cheating software, sexism and a c-level talent exodus, Lyft was scoring brownie points with Millennials giving to charity. In progressive cities in the U.S., this saw Lyft take customers (brand thunder) from Uber.
Ultimately, the Waymo and Lyft partnership is a signal that the two companies have found a mutual rival. #LyftWaymoPartnership
Enjoyed this article? Share it with your network.
Browse my LinkedIn articles here.
I'm the 2nd ranked LinkedIn Top Voice in Marketing and Social, and I actively cover the latest tech trends towards a disruptive future where artificial intelligence begins to permeate our cities and transform our civilization. I live at the intersection of technology and the future. Follow me to stay in touch.
Will this move put the heat on Uber? Could the Waymo lawsuit disrupt the great disruptor?
Lead process technician at ICU Medical
7 年just like total recall...
--
7 年Very good article. I wonder why an autonomous car looks (still) like a conventional car. When you don't have to drive the car yourself, you can do other things while in the car. Rotating chairs, docking stations, a tv-screen would be very pleasant, which means you have to redesign cars (especially the inside).
General Manager at ODIN Diving (Thailand) Ltd.
7 年Interested
Innovative, out-of-the-box thinking, accomplished, entrepreneurial and visionary improvement-driven and results-driven Manager
7 年Did anyone thought about damage to the human eyes when many such cars with lasers drive around? What effect it can have to birds and insects? Airplanes are already flying automatically without the need of pilot's interaction. There are very few passengers, however, willing to fly in a pilotless airplane. As for driverless cars - who will take responsibility in case of an accident? Software producer? Car producer? I believe better solution would be connecting cities with underground railway or any other form of public transport thus eliminating the need of having a car.
Business Adviser at Nectortree Ltd, I own and manage residential lettings, property development business as a portfolio
7 年having watched the Uber issues via employment status of drivers and who is supplying the car. I consider the "Uber" a closed or redundant dead end in the longer term. Self driver vehicles will be the case of follow the investment in terms of technology and development. I see there will be developments in terms of self drive vehicles and public transport on a local basis but in the longer term this requirements are likely to be generated by the personal driver/owner responsibility which will be driven by statutory response to the third party liability which is controlled by the insurers, and statute. The technical developments necessary to generate a high "riskfree" confidence is the end of the pier but from a technical stand point all attempts to integrate driver and self operational vehicles will always be a risky proposition if only from a standpoint of the irrational nature of drivers who dose off mentally while driving at any speed. How will the self drive vehicle respond while in the automatic mode save for stopping it cannot jump out of the way of the "straying" driver car so to speak. Likewise i cannot see until there exists none driver and self driver vehicles are segregated in terms of road access. The technology can resolve the driver-less vehicle as a mean of getting round but its the human aspects of urban environmental development which poses real issues to a medium term resolution. In essence the developers of the driver-less vehicles might well invest in safety and lower emission vehicles unless they plan to mount the car's on rails or dedicated car ways. Either way the financing of the development will follow the lower risk high return option.