An Uber self-driving Ford Fusion in Pittsburgh. Considering the fervent excitement of a few years ago – when Tesla Inc was promising full autonomy by, er, 2018, and a conservative industry stalwart like Ford Motor Co had a target date of 2021 – the current prospects for self-driving cars look bleak. — Pittsburgh Post-Gazette/TNS
A US$4bil (RM16.72bil) joint venture between Hyundai Motor Group and Aptiv Plc to develop autonomous cars might look like evidence that the promised land of self-driving vehicles is closer than we thought. In fact, it’s just the opposite.
The deal is certainly more than just fine words. Hyundai will be contributing US$1.6bil (RM6.69bil) in cash and US$400mil (RM1.67bil) in services, R&D and intellectual property for its 50% share. Aptiv will hand over intellectual property and 700 employees, and the two promise they’ll have an autonomous-driving platform by 2022.
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