Ford and Argo AI to launch self-driving cars with Lyft by the end of the year

An Argo-modified Ford autonomous automobile parked in Manhattan on Friday, July 12, 2019.

Ford will launch an autonomous automobile fleet with Lyft and Argo AI by the end of the year, the businesses introduced Wednesday.

Self-driving rides with security drivers will start this year in Miami. The corporations stated they plan to broaden to Austin, Texas, in 2022 and roll out about 1,000 self-driving cars in a number of markets inside 5 years.

The partnership comes as ride-hailing corporations Uber and Lyft ditch their very own in-house programs and as an alternative look to outdoors companions for self-driving expertise. Lyft introduced plans in April to promote its autonomous automobile unit to a subsidiary of Toyota for $550 million. In December, Uber offered its self-driving unit to start-up Aurora — which is backed by Hyundai and Amazon — amid security considerations and excessive prices.

“Each company brings the scale, knowledge and capability in their area of expertise that is necessary to make autonomous ride-hailing a business reality,” stated Lyft co-founder and CEO Logan Green.

As half of the settlement, Lyft will obtain 2.5% widespread fairness of Argo AI, the Ford and Volkswagen-backed autonomous automobile start-up that is reportedly preparing to go public as quickly as this year.

The race to deploy self-driving autos is heating up nationwide. General Motors CEO Mary Barra stated through the company’s first-quarter earnings name that she expects to supply shoppers autonomous autos this decade. Volkswagen is planning a self-driving microbus with Argo AI by 2025, whereas Ford stated in February it plans to make investments $29 billion in autonomous and electrical autos via 2025.

Ford and Argo AI have been testing fleets nationwide in Austin; Detroit; Miami; Palo Alto, California; Pittsburgh; and Washington, D.C.

Paul Eisenstein www.cnbc.com