Argo AI said Friday it is buying New Jersey-based Princeton Lightwave Inc. for an undisclosed price, a move that provides Ford with more immediate access to so-called lidar systems that use lasers to create a 3-D view of the world. The move comes on the heels of the purchase of a small lidar startup by General Motors Co.'s Cruise Automation driverless car unit. After spending decades farming out an increasing amount of work to independent suppliers, major auto makers are taking a different path when it comes to creating autonomous-driving systems. Lidar, for instance, is a system that could come from a third-party supplier that may not move at the speed that car companies require. "The component providers are not moving fast enough," Bryan Salesky, Argo chief executive, said in an interview ahead of the purchase announcement.

The governor of Michigan signed a legislative package Friday that allows cars without steering wheels or drivers to be tested on the state's highways. The plan is to make the state "the epicenter for driverless vehicle technology," said Gov. Rick Snyder. Florida already allows testing of completely driverless cars. With the new law, Michigan and Florida now are the most liberal states on laws governing driverless car technology. The bills drew strong bipartisan support as Michigan, the home of the U.S. auto industry, attempts to establish itself as a leader in driverless technology.