Fiat and Uber in talks over driverless car partnership

Fiat Chrysler Automotive is reportedly in talks with Uber over a potential partnership to develop driverless cars in the future. Sources close to the developments suggest that the talks are still in the preliminary phase, while an official announcement might be made around the end of this year, if things work out properly between the two companies.

If the above stated partnership does become a reality, Fiat will be responsible for providing hardware (cars) for the self-driving car project, while Uber will be in-charge of the software. This is an interesting proposition, as Fiat is currently a debt-laden company that doesn't have the financial power to develop necessary softwares for an autonomous vehicle. Uber, on the other hand, doesn't have expertise in developing cars. As a result, both the companies are trying to gather help from each other.

Interestingly, both Fiat and Uber have approached other companies in the past for their respective driver-less car projects. Fiat has even managed to strike a deal with Google, where the Italian automaker has supplied new 2017 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid minivans to the US-based tech-giant. Google will now test its autonomous driving technology on these Pacifica minivans. Uber too has been in talks with Toyota over the self-driving car project.

Other companies trying to venture into the self-driving car scene include major automakers like Audi, Ford, Mercedes, Lexus, Tesla and BMW. Amazon Inc. too is looking for the potential to use self-driving cars for increasing efficiency of distribution and deliveries of the e-commerce giant.

Source: Bloomberg