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It seems Google’s self-driving car division is not content with simply putting Uber out of business. Adding insult to injury, Waymo just announced a partnership with Lyft while its lawsuit with the bigger cab-hailing firm is still in ongoing. The collaboration obviously involves self-driving cabs, which Uber has been trying to get ahead of.
Uber has had the idea of being the first company to launch a fleet of self-driving cabs in the country for some time now. CEO Travis Kalanick even said in the past that the company’s future depended on it. With Waymo partnering with Lyft and the ongoing lawsuit, this future is practically dead. The two companies confirmed their collaboration on Sunday, Forbes reports.
The partnership will basically involve sharing trade secrets in order to incorporate Waymo’s first-rate self-driving technology into Lyft’s own cab-hailing system. As Waymo’s spokesperson, Johnny Luu said, the goal is to create new products that are safe and would have an expanded reach.
“We’re looking forward to working with Lyft to explore new self-driving products that will make our roads safer and transportation more accessible,” Luu said. “Lyft’s vision and commitment to improving the way cities move will help Waymo’s self-driving technology reach more people, in more places.”
Both companies have decided to hold off on announcing more details about their collaboration, for now. As a result, no one knows of the timeline and possible test sites that might be under consideration.
One thing is clear, however, and that’s the fact that the partnership spells trouble for Uber. As Business Insider points out, Waymo choosing Lyft was no coincidence. The two cab-hailing firms are the biggest rivals of their kind in the country and Waymo is currently butting heads with Uber over accusations of stolen trade secrets.
Then again, one could make the argument that Lyft and Waymo could have been discussing such a partnership before Uber acquired the supposed stolen autonomous driving technology. If so, it would have been a huge obstacle for the collaboration and thus, needed to be dealt with.
