Ford sets 2021 target for autonomous ride-sharing services

This is the aim of Ford, which is stepping up investment and collaboration with four start-ups to bring ride-hailing or ride-sharing services to market.

"We see autonomous vehicles as having as significant an impact on society as Ford's moving assembly line did 100 years ago," said Mark Fields, Ford president and CEO. "We're dedicated to putting on the road an autonomous vehicle that can improve safety and solve social and environmental challenges for millions of people - not just those who can afford luxury vehicles."

Ford's first fully autonomous vehicle will be a Society of Automotive Engineers-rated level 4-capable vehicle that will be available in high volumes.

Ford said it is bringing its plans to fruition by investing in Californian companies Velodyne and Civil Maps, which will investigate a more affordable means of mass-producing LiDAR sensors, and develop high-resolution 3D mapping capabilities respectively.

Furthermore, Ford has acquired SAIPS, an Israel-based computer vision and machine learning company, and taken out an exclusive licensing agreement with Nirenberg Neuroscience, a machine vision company founded by neuroscientist Dr Sheila Nirenberg, who cracked the neural code the eye uses to transmit visual information to the brain.