Lyft the ride-hailing company together with nuTonomy which dabbles in the technology of self-driving cars have launched their first self-driving car in Boston. Over the next couple of months, more cars will be rolled out for passengers in the eastern city, completely opposite from where Silicon Valley is.
Besides nuTonomy, Lyft has also partnered with Waymo and other tech and auto companies as the pace for self-driving cars heat up in the US.
Karl lagnemma, CEO and Co-founder of nuTonomy, said, “By combining forces with Lyft in the U.S., we’ll be positioned to build the best passenger experience for self-driving cars. Both companies care immensely about solving urban transportation issues and the future of our cities, and we look forward to working with Lyft as we continue to improve our autonomous vehicle software system.”
Logan Green, CEO and Co-founder of Lyft, said, “At Lyft, we imagine a world where car ownership is optional and cities are designed for people instead of cars. Partnering with nuTonomy is an important step towards making this vision a reality. The nuTonomy team is one of the first movers in autonomous vehicle development, and we look forward to working with them to bring their autonomous vehicles to the Lyft network.” The collaborative R&D effort will take place in Boston, MA, where nuTonomy has been testing.
The collaborative R&D effort will take place in Boston, MA, where nuTonomy has been testing its self-driving electric cars since the beginning of the year. The tests are being conducted in Boston’s Raymond L. Flynn Marine Park and the adjacent Seaport and Fort Point neighborhoods. An engineer from nuTonomy rides in each of its vehicles during testing to observe system performance and assume control if needed. Through its testing program in Boston, nuTonomy is building on the knowledge it has gained from the road tests and public trials it has been conducting in Singapore’s one-north business district since last August. nuTonomy plans to launch its self-driving mobility-on demand service in Singapore in 2018.
Following the initial phase of this partnership, Lyft and nuTonomy will consider expanding it in ways that will yield additional learning and data about the ideal function, performance and features of an autonomous mobility on demand service that could be deployed in cities to tackle the difficult challenge of urban driving.
