Uber, Mercedes-Benz parent partner on self-driving cars

A group of self driving Uber vehicles position themselves to take journalists on rides during a media preview at Uber's Advanced Technologies Center in Pittsburgh (Photo: Gene J. Puskar, AP) Ride-hailing service Uber and Daimler, the parent company of Mercedes-Benz, announced a partnership Thursday to work together on future self-driving cars. The goal would be to produce cars that can run on Uber's ride-hailing network. In a statement announcing the partnership, Uber's CEO Travis Kalanick didn't give a timeframe, only saying the program would be operational "in the coming years." Uber has been one of the most aggressive companies in trying to develop self-driving cars, envisioning the time when driverless cars prowl the streets of major cities picking up and dropping off passengers. "By opening up the Uber platform to Daimler, we can get to the future faster than going it alone," stated Kalanick.