German automaker Daimler is teaming up with Uber to introduce and operate its own self-driving cars on the app-based car service's ridesharing network in the years to come.
Uber CEO Travis Kalanick announced the partnership on Tuesday, noting that "making cars is really hard," a fact that became apparent when he visited an auto manufacturing plant. That's where Mercedes-Benz-owner Daimler comes in.
"Instead of building them ourselves, we want to partner with the best auto manufacturers in the world," Kalanick wrote. "We can combine Uber's global ridesharing network with the world-class vehicles of companies like Daimler, so that Uber riders can have a great experience getting around their cities."
He didn't reveal too many other details of the partnership except to say it will accelerate Uber's self-driving ambitions. "By opening up the Uber platform to Daimler, we can get to the future faster than going it alone," Kalanick wrote. "It's a future in which our cities and roads will be safer, cleaner and more accessible, and we couldn't be more excited about what's next."
A fleet of self-driving hybrid Ford Fusions branded with Uber's Advanced Technologies Center (ATC) logo and outfitted with an array of sensors are already picking up Uber passengers in Pittsburgh. Uber also deployed a fleet of autonomous Volvos in San Francisco, but failed to secure the correct permits before doing so, forcing it to end the San Francisco tests and retreat to Arizona.
Uber last year also acquired Otto, a start-up "whose mission is to rethink transportation, starting with self-driving trucks"—one of which completed a 120-mile trek across Colorado to deliver beer. Daimler has also been working on self-driving trucks; in 2015, it demoed a self-driving 18-wheeler.
Daimler subsidiary Car2Go this week also announced it is adding "thousands" of 2017 model Mercedes-Benz CLA coupes and GLA SUVs to its fleet. Until now, the company's fleet has been made up exclusively of Smart Fortwo mini-cars.
The announcement comes at a tense time for Uber, which came under fire over the weekend for failing to participate in a taxi strike at New York's JFK Airport protesting Donald Trump's executive order on immigration. The #DeleteUber hashtag began trending on Twitter, encouraging folks to quit the pickup service. Uber tweeted that it did not intend to break a strike; Kalanick has pledged to create a $3 million legal defense fund to help affected employees.