Ford has announced plans to deliver a fully autonomous vehicle made for the mass market by 2021, with the car specifically designed for ride sharing.
In order to get to its 2021 target, Ford will be investing in or collaborating with four start-ups to enhance the autonomous vehicle development. This will double both its Silicon Valley team, as well as more than doubling its Palo Alto campus.
Ford president and CEO, Mark Fields said; “The next decade will be defined by automation of the automobile, and we see autonomous vehicles as having as significant an impact on society as Ford’s moving assembly line did 100 years ago.”
“We’re dedicated to putting on the road an autonomous vehicle that can improve safety and solve social and environmental challenges for millions of people – not just those who can afford luxury vehicles.”
Ford’s first fully autonomous vehicle will roll off the assembly line without a steering wheel or pedals, with the vehicle looking to grab a share of the commercial mobility service market, such as ride sharing and ride hailing.
This year alone, Ford plans to triple its autonomous vehicle test fleet to be the largest test fleet of any automaker.
Ford also announced its four key investments and collaborations to deliver the autonomous vehicle in 2021, these being; Velodyne, the Silicon Valley-based leader in light detection and ranging (LiDAR) sensors; SAIPS, developer of algorithmic solutions in image and video processing, deep learning, signal processing and classification; Nirenberg Neuroscience, a machine vision company; and Civil Maps, developer of scalable, 3D mapping technique.
In relation to the rising of the autonomous vehicles, Ford is also expanding its Silicon Valley operations, creating a dedicated campus in Palo Alto.
“Our presence in Silicon Valley has been integral to accelerating our learning and deliverables driving Ford Smart Mobility,” said Ken Washington, Ford vice president, Research and Advanced Engineering. “Our goal was to become a member of the community. Today, we are actively working with more than 40 startups, and have developed a strong collaboration with many incubators, allowing us to accelerate development of technologies and services.”
