VW reviewing autonomous car alliances, Waymo seen as a leader: CFO

Volkswagen CFO Frank Witter speaks at the annual earnings news conference of VW in Berlin in Berlin, Germany, March 13, 2018. REUTERS/Hannibal Hanschke - UP1EE3D0RWSD1

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Volkswagen Chief Financial Officer Frank Witter on Tuesday said the carmaker was open to deeper alliances with outside companies, particularly in the area of autonomous driving, where Google’s Waymo is seen to be an industry leader.

“It remains to be seen whether every carmaker develops their own system, or whether you bundle your efforts,” Witter said in a conference call with journalists.

“We want to have access to a self-driving system and we are speaking with relevant players. It is very expensive to develop and others are already well advanced. Waymo is one of them,” Witter said, adding that no final decision had been taken.

Witter said sharing the carmaker’s electric cars platform MEB with Ford was theoretically possible, although the carmaker is currently focussed on rolling out the electric vehicle technologies among its own brands.

Reporting by Edward Taylor; Editing by Michelle Martin

Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

(Original source)