The Google driverless car dream is inching closer to reality, with plans of it being spun off from Google as an Alphabet Inc. company in 2016, reports Bloomberg Business.
Google’s self-driving cars have been testing Austin and San Francisco – with 53 vehicles on the road as of November 2015. The goal is to create a ride-sharing program, with its first deployments aimed at communal areas like college or corporate campuses.
By turning the company into its own entity, Google may be looking deeper into ways to monetize the driverless cars, directly challenging popular ride-sharing services like Uber and Lyft. Currently, it releases monthly reports of its car tests, with a few vehicles having gotten into minor accidents and one that even got pulled over by a police.
Driverless car is the second business Google has spun off as a Alphabet company in recent weeks. Earlier this month, it rebranded its Life Sciences division as Verily.
➤ Google to Make Driverless Cars an Alphabet Company in 2016 [Bloomberg]
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