GM takes stake in ride-hailing service Lyft

GM meanwhile is working on developing autonomous cars, and says it will launch a fleet of self-driving Chevrolet Volts at the campus of its Warren, Michigan-based technical center late in 2016.

General Motors (GM) has announced it will invest $500m in Uber rival Lyft in order to develop an on-demand network of self-driving cars.

“We strongly believe that autonomous vehicle go-to-market strategy is through a network, not through individual auto ownership”, John Zimmer, Lyft’s president, said in an interview.

GM President Dan Ammann stated they see a future of personal mobility that is “connected, seamless and autonomous”.

GM and Lyft announced the joint venture on Monday, with the two companies agreeing to work together on driverless cars themselves, and driverless cars that will operate as for-hire vehicles, .

The service will utilise GM’s work on driverless cars with Lyft’s software platform that matches drivers and passengers and calculates routes. The company just completed a big $1 billion round of financing. “We are thrilled to take this momentum into the new year and continue improving life in our cities through more affordable, accessible and enjoyable transportation”. Lyft drivers will be eligible to lease GM vehicles on a short term basis to use for business purposes. In addition to its financial support, GM is also granting Lyft access to short-term use vehicles by way of rental hubs throughout the US, and will provide Lyft drivers access to both their extensive network of cars and their OnStar services.

The other $500 million was pledged from Janus Capital Management, Saudi Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal’s Kingdom Holding Co., along with previous investors Alibaba, Didi and Rakuten. The companies provided no timeline for their ride sharing service.