Alibaba Next Project Is Driver-less Cars
Alibaba Next Project Is Driver-less Cars: E-commerce giant Alibaba is navigating resources towards driverless car technology. CEO Jack Ma confirmed joining a global race to shape the future of driving. On his business trip to Bangkok he shared that “We have been doing a lot of research on driverless things.” The effort of making driverless cars by Alibab is led by Gang Wang, a scientist at the company’s AI lab.
Many tech giants like Google as well as automakers are accelerating plans in an industry attracting billions of dollars. The competition is heating up in China, the world’s largest car market, with internet firm and Alibaba. Self-driving cars hold the promise of being more attentive and quicker to react than humans at the wheels, while also allowing people to use travel time more productively or pleasantly.
Baidu, competitor of Alibaba recently has predicted that self-driving vehicles will hit the road in the country within 3 to 5 years. Both Baidu and Chinese tech giant Tencent are pursuing the technology, stirring speculation about Alibaba’s plans.
Alibaba wants to (figure out) how we can make the cars more automatic, more friendly, more like a partner of human beings rather than just a driving tool. Ma was speaking at a press conference in Bangkok after signing agreements with the Thai government, including a more than $300 million investment in a “digital hub” in eastern Thailand aimed at connecting regional markets.
Ma said that his company’s purpose is not to commercially compete with rivals Tencent and Baidu. China is scrambling to compete with America in developing driver-less cars as quickly as possible. Chinese authorities approved regulations this month to allow for local driverless road tests, according to state-backed media, which reported on Wednesday that Alibaba was adding staff to work on the technology.
Alibaba has already invested in Xiaopeng Motors, a startup developing electric cars. It also has formed a partnership with Chinese carmaker SAIC to build internet-connected vehicles and associated infrastructure.
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