April 20, 2017
It seems that every major auto manufacturer has been focusing operations on establishing efficient and safe self-driving vehicles for interested shoppers. General Motors has recently taken it upon itself to begin expanding operations near the Silicon Valley region in order to better provide drivers with self-driving vehicle options. The automaker had said that it is planning on hiring 1,100 people and investing over $14 million into a brand new development center located in San Francisco. This center will strive to spearhead the brand's operations on self-driving vehicles. With such an approach chosen to optimize operations, many customers are looking forward to seeing what developments the brand will be able to make in the coming years.
G.M. is planning on working with Cruise Automation, which is an autonomous-driving software group that the larger G.M. company had acquired in 2016. The two giants have been working together to test over 50 Chevrolet Bolt electric vehicles that were equipped with reliable and efficient self-driving technology options. Tests were conducted on various public roads in Arizona and California. The new investments and hires are designed to help accelerate and expand the scope of the brand's work, and representatives say that they are hoping to provide drivers with more efficient autonomous technology that can emphasize driver safety while reducing many concerns on the road. In order to continue work as a start-up, the brand is focusing on staying at the forefront of the competition, striving to develop new market applications and technologies.
This move comes to keep up with the changing global landscape as more and more auto manufacturers are rushing to partner with start-ups and acquire the technology necessary to focus on establishing reliable autonomous vehicles. Ford Motors has said that it plans on investing over $1 billion over a period of five years into Argo AI, which is an artificial intelligence company that focuses on developing and releasing new technology to optimize the operation of self-driving cars. Similar efforts are being developed at BMW, Audi and many other car companies in order to keep up with the changing landscape.
Many experts in the automotive industry are planning on working with G.M. in the future, and a tremendous race for technological developments in the Silicon Valley region hopes to drive innovation forward. Both technological developments and raw engineering talent is in high demand in the area, and many are looking forward to seeing what new developments will become available as the best and the brightest come together to work on various automotive projects. Currently, many algorithmic developments promise that self-driving vehicles may be able to work together in order to stay up-to-date on road information as it develops during the drive.