You might recall that earlier today we reported that according to the rumors, Google was apparently abandoning the concept of fully autonomous vehicles and that Google’s parent company, Alphabet, was thinking about spinning the Google X project off into its own company (would still be part of Alphabet).
Turns out the information in the report was spot-on because Google has announced that its self-driving car project will be spun-off into its own company called Waymo. Moving forward, Waymo will be the new company that will handle the self-driving car project.
According to John Krafcik, the former CEO of the self-driving project, “Today, we’re taking our next big step by becoming Waymo, a new Alphabet business. Waymo stands for a new way forward in mobility. We’re a self-driving technology company with a mission to make it safe and easy for people and things to move around.”
So what does this mean for the company and the project? While Krafcik did not confirm the rumors that Google was shifting its focus slightly, he did say, “We’re not in the business of making better cars. We’re in the business of making better drivers.” However judging from the promo video and wording on its website, it seems like it’s business as usual for now.
Filed in . Read more about Google, Self-Driving Cars and Waymo.