Uber set the internet abuzz last week with the rollout of their new autonomous vehicles that are now serving the Pittsburgh area.
Well, it looks like Metro Detroit’s going to get some investment from Uber around self-driving cars. The Automotive News and the Wall Street Journal are reporting that Uber is going to open a facility in Metro Detroit to increase collaboration with the automakers.
And depending on how the state regulations shake out, we also could be home to a fleet of self-driving Ubers says the Detroit News.
Recently hired former Ford employee Sherif Marakby, who runs Uber’s global vehicle programs, is saying that the company doesn’t have interest in making cars or creating hardware. Instead, the ride sharing technology company wants to work with the Tier 1 supply chain that exists.
The Automotive News reports that they’re already talking to the state, presumably for site selection and incentives (for context, almost all large developments nowadays receive state tax or other development incentives of some form).
“We’re working with the state,” Marakby told the Automotive News. “We’re very optimistic.
This would probably be focused on lighter vehicles like passenger cars. Uber’s SUVs are already supplied by Volvo. General Motors probably won’t be in on this action, as they recently made a $500 million investment in Uber competitor, Lyft.
There are no hard timelines on these projects as of yet.
