Yahoo Autos Ford and Google Deal To Go Beyond Autonomous Vehicles
While last-minute snags could yet delay a formal announcement, Ford Motor Co. and Google are planning to reveal the details of an extensive new partnership during a news conference at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas this week.
The expansive alliance will provide Ford access to Google’s cutting-edge autonomous vehicle technology, but several sources involved in the program told TheDetroitBureau.com that the deal will go well beyond self-driving cars and explore ways in which connected car technology can create alternative mobility solutions, a pet project of Ford CEO Mark Fields.
Other high-tech providers will join the alliance and, among other things, Ford will be able to test its new technologies at a 1,000-acre proving grounds being set up in North Carolina, according to those sources.
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Self-driving vehicles have become one of the hottest topics in the auto industry, and the first semi-autonomous vehicles are just now getting out on the road. Tesla Motors recently introduced its AutoPilot system which allows hand-free operation on limited-access highways. General Motors’ Cadillac brand and Nissan, among others, are planning to roll out similar features, with that Japanese marque promising to have its first fully autonomous car in production by 2020.
A study released last month by Britain’s Juniper Research listed Google as having the most advanced self-driving technology. But the Silicon Valley tech giant has said it doesn’t plan to produce cars of its own, opting instead to find other automakers willing to license what it has developed.
The tie-up with Ford – a non-exclusive deal, insiders say – would be the first such alliance. And it would be a major plus for the Detroit maker. Company sources say former Ford Chief Executive Officer Alan Mulally initially was reluctant to embrace autonomous vehicle development. Under his successor, CEO Fields, the carmaker has had to play a game of catch-up.
Ford has begun testing its own technology using a small fleet of Fusion sedans. It recently became the first carmaker to venture out on the 80-acre MCity testing facility set up by the University of Michigan, in Ann Arbor. And it plans to start testing an autonomous Fusion prototype from its new Silicon Valley test center this month.
But the North Carolina proving grounds would be more than 10 times bigger than MCity while also allowing for Ford to take more risks than it could comfortably and safely handle on public roads in California.
