Mark your calendars: automakers plan to put truly autonomous cars on our roads in the next five years.
Ford has announced that it will manufacture a fleet of fully automated driverless cars, without steering wheels or pedals, and put them into commercial operation by 2021. The company—which has previously been modest about its self-driving-car claims—says that the vehicles will initially be used in ride-sharing fleets and for package delivery services, though it doesn’t say which companies might be involved.
To enact its plan, Ford has acquired the Israeli machine-learning firm SAIPS and invested $75 million into the laser imaging company Velodyne, and it plans to double the size of its Silicon Valley staff.