One of the leading developers of new mobility technologies, Aptiv (formerly Delphi Automotive), has announced the launch of a fleet of 30 autonomous vehicles (AVs) in Las Vegas, Nevada, to operate on the Lyft network.
A product of Aptiv’s Mobility and Services group, the vehicles will operate on the company’s fully-integrated autonomous driving platform and will be available to the public in partnership with Lyft. On an ‘opt-in’ basis, passengers will be able to hail a self-driving vehicle equipped with Aptiv technology to and from high-demand locations. The partnership is a multi-year agreement between the two companies and a clear step toward generating revenue for Aptiv’s autonomous driving business. The two will make use of Aptiv’s connected services capabilities and Lyft’s ride-hailing experience to provide valuable insights into self-driving fleet operations and management.
California-based Lyft is the fastest growing rideshare company in the USA and is available to 95% of the country’s population, as well as offering services in Ontario, Canada. The combination of Aptiv’s autonomous driving technology and Lyft’s ride-hailing app is the latest development in a successful partnership launched at CES 2018 in Las Vegas in January this year. That initial pilot provided more than 400 self-driving rides to the public, and earned an average customer rating of 4.99 out of five stars. Like the CES program, the self-driving vehicles will be overseen by highly-trained safety drivers. The new fleet of Aptiv AVs operating through the Lyft network will be available to the general public in Las Vegas from May 3.
“With our autonomous driving technology deployed throughout Las Vegas and broadly accessible through the Lyft app, a wide range of consumers will be able to share the experience of autonomous vehicles in a complex urban environment,” said Kevin Clark, Aptiv’s president and chief executive officer. “More importantly, the resulting knowledge and data will allow us to further refine our autonomous driving capabilities and strengthen our portfolio of industry-leading active safety solutions.”
Aptiv has a strong foundation in delivering safe technologies. The company has just announced the relocation of its global headquarters from the UK to Dublin in Ireland. It has 14 technical centers worldwide, as well as manufacturing sites and customer support centers in 45 countries.
