Google and Fiat team up
Fiat has announced a new partnership with Google with the intent to double the internet search giant’s fleet of self-driving cars.
Fiat are poised to donate 100 Chrysler Pacifica vans to the Google cause, as well as lending engineers to help the project reach fruition. The deal has been heralded by the two companies as the most advanced deal to partnership between a Silicon Valley and a car manufacturer.
The reason for the partnership is Google’s ambition to expand its current fleet, in order to cover more road miles in testing of its autonomous car army. The tech giant has predicted their driverless cars will be road-worthy by 2020.
Google's head of self-driving cars, John Krafcik, commented "The opportunity to work closely with [Fiat] engineers will accelerate our efforts to develop a fully self-driving car that will make our roads safer.”
It’s possible that the partnership could lead to future pairings between the two companies, and Fiat may be in the running as a major manufacturer of Google’s self-driving cars.