Fully autonomous driving has always been the goal of our project, because we think this could improve road safety and help lots of people who can’t drive.
We’re now developing prototypes of vehicles that have been designed from the ground up to drive themselves—just push a button and they’ll take you where you want to go! We’ll use these vehicles to test our software and learn what it will really take to bring this technology into the world.
LOS ANGELES: Google is building a car without a steering wheel.
Sergey Brin, co-founder of the technology titan, told a Southern California tech conference on Tuesday evening that Google will make 100 prototype cars that drive themselves and therefore do not need a wheel. Or brake and gas pedals.
Instead, there are buttons for go and stop.
A combination of sensors and computing power takes the driving from there.
To date, Google has driven hundreds of thousands of miles on public roads with Lexus SUVs and Toyota Priuses outfitted with the special equipment.
This prototype is the first Google will have built for itself.
It won’t be for sale, and Google is unlikely to go deeply into auto manufacturing. In a blog post, the company emphasized partnering with other firms.