Is Google Going to Partner with GM on Driverless Tech?

Self-driving vehicles aren’t expected to be on public roadways in non-testing phases before 2020. The primary leader in self-driving technology is not an automaker … it’s Google. The California-based search engine company has created their own pod-like self-driving cars. The company has also tested specially modified Lexus and Toyota Prius vehicles.

The company has talked about self-driving cars showing up on public roads as soon as possible, however, to get there they are looking for partnerships. Among those partners could be General Motors. Dan Flores, a spokesman for GM, told ComputerWorld, “We’ve talked to Google about a variety of things. We’ve had projects with them in the past. Would we be willing to talk with them in the future? Sure. We’d talk to any company with potentially interesting technology.” However Flores went on to say that he doesn’t see fully autonomous vehicles in the near future. Flores said, “We could be talking about five, 10 or 15 years when the technology is advanced enough for a car to drive itself in all circumstances.”

Also potentially partnering with Google could be Ford, Toyota, Daimler AG and Volkswagen. According to Reuters, the director of Google’s Self-Driving Car Project Chris Urmson said, “We’d be remiss not to talk to the biggest auto manufacturers. They’ve got a lot to offer.” Google is reaching out to automakers because they aren’t looking to become one. They want to establish partnerships for a self-driving car, not jump into the auto industry as an up-and-comer. After all, Urmson said that Google knows that they can’t just start making cars. Urmson explained, “For us to jump in and say that we can do this better, that’s arrogant.” Roush, the organization famous for customizing the Ford Mustang, built the self-driving cars that Google showcased during 2014.

What will it take for Google to help get self-driving cars to market by 2020? How many years would it take people to trust self-driving cars at high speeds and during dangerous weather? How do you feel about fully autonomous self-driving cars?