Ford Plans Robo-Taxi Network 'At Scale'

April 16, 2018—Ford plans to operate its own robo-taxi network “at scale” in 2021 to transport people and goods, reported Financial Times.

Jim Farley, global markets president and joint-number two at the US carmaker, said the business planned to operate a network of custom-built vehicles itself, rather than sell its technology to a ride-hailing operator, according to the report.

The group last year spent $1 billion on AI start-up Argo to compete with Waymo and Uber as well as automotive rivals such as General Motors and Toyota in developing self-driving vehicles.

It is also trialling a service in Miami with Domino’s Pizza to hone its business model, such as offering consumers discounts to leave their apartment and walk out to a human-free delivery car.

The company is working towards deploying its vehicles at scale in 2021.