The autonomous vehicle industry is not just a Silicon Valley dream. Driverless vehicles are coming fast, and they will change car driving and car ownership forever. General Motors is betting big on driverless cars, and so is Uber. But there is a new kid on the driverless vehicle block, and that kid is Lyft. Lyft can’t afford to let Uber take a front seat in this race to change driving habits in the United States and all over the world.
Lyft is building it owns self-driving car team. The team of a few hundred engineers will be in full swing by the end of 2018. Lyft has a deal with the autonomous vehicle software company, nuTonomy. According to USAToday.com the move into the self-driving vehicle business is Lyft’s way to ensure its survival.
GM, Uber, and Lyft are not the only players in this new auto business. Google has Waymo, a driverless car program that has been up and running for eight years. Waymo and Uber are in a court battle that involves a former Waymo executive who allegedly went to Uber with some LiDAR trade secrets, according to the suit. The trial is due to begin in the fall.
The driverless vehicle business is going to be big in more ways than one. For example, the short haul domestic flight business may go away once the self-driving vehicle business is running smoothly. And self-driving cars will open the door for new businesses like mobile elderly care and in-car café services. Travel to and from airports will be another area that driverless cars take the lead. And people won’t need to buy a car when these driverless car companies start a subscription service. The $9,000 a year most people pay to own a car is incentive enough to start a subscription service with a driverless car company.
General Motors is not wasting anytime covering their bets in this sure-to-be-a-hit business. GM put up $500 million, and the giant automaker is now one of Lyft’s partners in the self-driving technology division. But GM will continue to develop its own driverless program.
The big question is when will driverless cars be on the road in mass? And the answer is within 10 years, according to industry experts. The technology works now. But tech engineers are still working on some of the initial bugs in the program. Investors are already jumping into the driverless vehicle industry. There is enough money to make the driverless concept successful. And driverless vehicle stock will make a lot of people rich.
Dil Bole Oberoi
