The Fiat will supply 100 Chrysler
Pacifica vans and provide engineers to help integrate the technology and
the companies which have described the deal as the most advanced
partnership to date between Silicon Valley and a traditional carmaker.
John
Krafcik the Google's head of self-driving cars has stated that the
opportunity to work closely with [Fiat] engineers will accelerate their
efforts to develop a fully self-driving car that will make our roads
safer. Google has said that it believes driverless cars could be ready
to goes on sale by 2020.
Karl
Brauer, a senior analyst at Kelley Blue Book has told that they can be a
box-on-wheels and can move more humans around minivans will fit into
the transportation fleets easily. Google will own the Fiat cars and both
companies will be free to work with other companies to develop
driverless technology.
The announcement
of the partnership has come a week after Astro Teller, the head of 'Moon
Shots' at Google has said the driverless cars project may soon move
from under the umbrella of the Google X division that focuses on
futuristic innovations and projects and the deal could propel Fiat to
the head of the self-driving pack and position it to become a major
manufacture for Google.