Evolution and revolution go hand-in-hand.
Evolution embraces order and progress. Revolution inspires change and tenacity. At FCA,
we leverage both in our exploration of the next mobility frontier – autonomous driving.
Tracking a progression framed by the five levels of autonomy, we are developing our own
evolutionary technologies. Our Maserati brand is already offering a hands-on-wheel, highway
assist safety feature. The stylish Chrysler Portal concept is our vision of a Level 3 vehicle (conditional automation), with the capacity to upgrade to Level 4 (high automation).
Meanwhile, we are collaborating with Waymo on a revolutionary project, to immediately
deliver highly autonomous vehicles (Level 4). Waymo is adding thousands of Chrysler Pacifica Hybrids to its existing fleet, as it launches the world’s first driverless ride-hailing service. We signed an agreement with Waymo to supply an additional 62,000 Pacifica Hybrid minivans and collaborate on developing what we believe will be the first significant fully-autonomous system in the market for both fleet and private customers.
We have also invested more than $30 million at our Chelsea Proving Grounds in southeast Michigan to further development and testing of autonomous vehicle and advanced safety technologies. The all-new facility features a dedicated autonomous highway-speed track, 35-acre safety-feature evaluation area and a high-tech command center.
We also signed a memorandum of understanding to join BMW Group, Intel and Mobileye to create a state-of-the-art autonomous driving platform for global deployment. The open platform will be scalable from highly to fully automated driving and will accommodate the unique needs of multiple auto makers, while affording each the flexibility to offer brand-based differentiation.
In addition, we are expanding our existing relationship with APTIV, collaborating on a variety of autonomous technology studies and development projects, in order to apply APTIV’s L2+ system on our premium and high-end vehicles, starting with the 2020 launches.