Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) is one of the industry leaders as far as autonomous technology is concerned but General Motors Company (NYSE:GM) is trying to win the crown in the same segment.
General Motors has also been developing its own autonomous technology that can safely maneuver through urban roads without any human aid. The company aims to compete with Tesla on level ground and perhaps even emerge the best in the self-driving vehicles segment.
GM’s CEO Mary Barra released a statement during her company’s Q3 earnings conference call through which she explained the partnership with Lyft. The CEO stated that the partnership will feature autonomous vehicles with speed restrictions and they will be within specific geographic boundaries.
“That’s why the ownership will stay with the company in these first models as we continue to learn,” stated Barra.
The CEO’s statement reveals the difference between GM’s strategy and that of Tesla. While Tesla makes the autonomous technology available to the customer, GM will not initially hand over the technology to the customers. Instead, it will own the vehicles that will be deployed into the ride-hailing business. Despite the differences in the strategies used by both firms, they face some common problems such as safety. They obviously both aim to reduce the number of road accidents.
Tesla has been plagued with criticism over its autonomous “Autopilot” technology following numerous accidents that have taken place while the self-driving feature was active. Tesla CEO Elon Musk recently revealed that all Tesla vehicle will be fitted cameras and radar technology so that they will eventually be capable of driving themselves without human intervention. GM is also venturing deeper into Tesla’s territory with its electric vehicle offering. The company is expected to launch a Chevy Bolt that offers a range of 238 miles and a price tag of $37,500. It will be launched before the end of the year and is expected to compete with Tesla’s upcoming Model 3.
Tesla stock closed the latest trading session at $31.60.
