That’s why our partnership with Volvo is so important.
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“By joining forces with Uber we can fast forward to the future”.
Sweden’s Volvo Cars, a subsidiary of China’s Geely, has just announced it will partner with Uber to produce a fleet of autonomous ride-sharing vehicles.
Volvo will use the same base vehicle for the next stage of its own autonomous auto strategy, which will involve fully autonomous driving, the company said.
Passengers in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania will be the first to experience the pilot project – home to Uber’s self-driving research and autonomous technology lab. Hagen-Frederiksen, the spokesperson for the commission that oversees Uber’s operations in the state, said they will carefully review the company’s plan as part of its commitment to public safety. Operations will be located in San Francisco, Palo Alto and Pittsburgh and cover transportation, delivery and trucking.
Although engineers from both companies will work together on the project, Volvo and Uber add their own self-driving systems and software on top of the jointly developed base vehicles.
But its CEO, Travis Kalanick, has said that without drivers, the cost of hailing a ride will be cheaper than owning a vehicle.
Kalanick claimed 90 percent of road accidents were due to human error and that driverless cars would save lives. Uber will only make a few cars available to start – with the eventual goal of having 100 in Pittsburgh and possibly elsewhere in the coming months – and they will only go limited distances within the city.
In another deal, the company announced a $300 million alliance with Volvo to supply vehicles and technology.
Ride-hailing companies have been striking these sorts of partnerships at a rapid pace. By using human backup drivers, Uber basically is going to test the technology and take people along for the ride, he said.
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Travis Kalanick, Uber’s chief executive, said: “over one million people die in auto accidents every year”.
