SAN FRANCISCO — Google's autonomous car execs have made no secret of their interest in finding a partner in the automotive manufacturing world for their technology.
Could Fiat Chrysler Automobiles be that partner?
According to a report Thursday on autoextremist.com, Google is in late stages of talks with Fiat Chrysler about a partnership that would transfer the tech company's self-driving car innovations to the group's expansive line-up, which ranges from Chrysler mini-vans to Ferrari supercars.
In a coincidence, Fiat's diminutive 500 two-door looks similar to Google's self-driving two-passenger prototype.
Both FCA and Google declined to comment on the speculation.
This isn't the first time Google has been rumored to be in talks with another automaker. In December, news reports indicated that Ford CEO Mark Fields would announce a Ford/Google tech partnership at January's Consumer Electronics Show. Ford denied the report, and no such announcement took place.The report cited unnamed persons familiar with the negotiations. Google and FCA declined to comment on the speculation.
Fiat has been making noise of late about perhaps merging with another automotive giant to increase the scale of its operations and bring increased profitability to its books. FCA chairman John Elkann recently said that the company could save $10 billion by merging with one of the industry's other "big guys."
Google would not exactly fit that description, although having a pipeline to cutting edge tech would be a boon to any manufacturer as consumers increasingly make their purchasing decisions based on an automobile's tech features.
Self-driving car technology is improving at a rapid clip, as tech companies such as Google and Uber push into the space while automakers such as Ford, Audi and Volvo continue to add driver-assist features to standard automobiles. Many experts point to 2020 as a date when the world might first see consumer-ready autonomous cars.
Google has been working on self-driving car tech for nearly seven years, and has put more than 1.2 million miles on a fleet of Lexus SUV rigged with a variety of sensors. The company is testing on the streets of Phoenix, Austin, Kirkland, Wash., and Mountain View, Calif.
On Wednesday, self-driving car executives and industry leaders gathered at Stanford University for another information-gathering session organized with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which is aiming to come up with a set of autonomous car guidelines later this summer.
Follow USA TODAY tech reporter Marco della Cava on Twitter: @marcodellacava
