“Uber wants to bring self-propelled cars into a separate company.

“Uber wants to bring self-propelled cars into a separate company.

Uber is considering separating and demerging its Advanced Technologies Group, which is engaged in the development of self-propelled vehicles. This choice would have been made in order to make the planned IPO run more smoothly. The development of self-propelled cars is very expensive.

The Financial Times reported this today in a report on the planned IPO of Uber. Two anonymous sources familiar with the matter state that Uber is considering selling shares in the Advanced Technologies Group. Uber would hold a majority stake himself, as well as operational control.

Still in development

Self-propelled cars are currently under development. The time when the technology is realised is probably still far into the future, although there are more and more car manufacturers with technologies that at least enable a form of independent driving for cars. Putting the technology on the road now poses a risk for some companies, due to the possible accidents involving the autonomous vehicles.

In March, Uber temporarily halted his work on autonomous cars after a pedestrian was hit by one of the cars. The pedestrian was killed and the accident led to an extensive investigation. For investors, this makes the shares less interesting, as accidents can lead to high compensation claims. In addition, the Advanced Technologies Group costs five hundred million dollars a year. Reducing costs is important for the planned IPO.

Both Uber and Lyft are in a race to be the first to make an IPO. Uber would be worth USD 120 billion if it went public – more than the three largest car manufacturers – Ford, GM and Fiat Crysler – combined. Lyft now has JPMorgan’s support for next year’s breaded flotation.

This news article was automatically translated from Dutch to give Techzine.eu a head start. All news articles after September 1, 2019 are written in native English and NOT translated. All our background stories are written in native English as well. For more information read our launch article.