Google creates new self-driving car company Waymo

After 10 years of developing self-driving car technology, Google introduce new company, Waymo.

Google have announced the creation of new company, Waymo, which will showcase its self-driving cars and launch its own ride-sharing service.

The new business, Waymo, will be owned by Google’s parent company, Alphabet.

The announcement signals a push to commercialise the technology, which google have been developing for 10 years.

Google showcased the autonomous vehicle technology at a media event, where they presented the story of a blind man who was able to make a full journey using the prototype self-driving car. The footage was from 2015, but the company spoke about it for the first time at the event.

First ride with Steve Mahan and Nathaniel Fairfield

John Krafcik, CEO of Waymo, said: “Steve Mahan rode alone in one of our prototype vehicles, cruising through Austin’s suburbs.

“Steve is legally blind, so our sensors and software were his chauffeur.

“We believe that this technology can begin to reshape some of the ten trillion miles that motor vehicles travel around the world every year, with safer, more efficient and more accessible forms of transport.”

 

Tesla have been introducing electric vehicles to the real roads, while Google has been taking a far more cautious approach. However, Waymo have now said it will try and apply the technology behind self-driving vehicles to other purposes, suggesting urgency in finding commercial uses for the technology which they have been keeping behind closed doors.

The Waymo announcement could suggest that Google will deviate from its original goal of only offering 100% self-driving vehicles, with Krafcik emphasizing that the new company is focused on technology, not necessarily making cars.

“We are a self driving technology company,” he said pointedly. “We’ve been really clear that we’re not a car company although there’s been some confusion on that point. We’re not in the business of making better cars. We’re in the business of making better drivers.”

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