GM is collaborating with ride-hailing company Lyft and its mastermind Logan Green to build a fleet of autonomous vehicles. What impact will this partnership have on the auto industry?
Name: Logan Green
Occupation: Co-founder & CEO of Lyft
Salary/net worth: Lyft is valued at US $5.5-billion
Claim to fame: Partnered with GM to build a fleet of on-demand, autonomous vehicles
Logan Green is the co-founder and CEO of Lyft, one of the fastest growing ride-hailing companies in the U.S. Known for its trademark pink mustache, the company started in 2012 as a means to cut traffic chaos and improve personal mobility.
The service is easy, quick, inexpensive, and convenient to use — simply tap a mobile app to request a private or shared vehicle when needed.
Green’s goal is to make the world greener by reducing the number of vehicles on the road, while making Lyft the best alternative to owning a car or taking public transportation.
To date, Green’s startup operates in more than 190 cities across the U.S., servicing seven million shared rides a month. He has also partnered with ride-sharing services in China and India to expand Lyft’s global reach.
Currently, the privately-held company is valued at US $5.5-billion and revenue this year is forecast to be about US $1-billion.
Green and Lyft made headlines earlier this year when GM invested US $500-million into the San Francisco-based startup — part of a $1-billion round of venture financing.
Together, GM and Lyft have big plans to build a fleet of on-demand autonomous cars. They’ve already set up rental spots in the U.S. where Lyft drivers can rent GM cars instead of buying them to make extra cash while driving Lyft vehicles.
Why would GM want to collaborate with Lyft, a company whose main objective is to slash the number of vehicles on the road?
It’s a bold move that could pay off significantly for both parties.
Lyft gets access to GM’s global connections and its expertise in connected and autonomous cars. Plus, it gives them an edge over rival Uber, who is in the midst of developing driverless cars.
In return, GM gets an advantage over its competitors, namely Ford and Daimler AG, who are also vying for a piece of the ride-sharing market. It also gets more millennials into GM products while building connections and relationships with potentially new consumers.
But will this partnership kill car sales? That’s unlikely.
Canada and the U.S. had record auto sales in 2015, and it looks like they’re on track to repeat that success in 2016.
Still, ride-hailing services are impacting city transportation, public transit, the taxi industry, and even the environment.
While the model may work in major cities, in the suburbs and rural areas it’s a different story. And a network of self-driving cars may be a long way down the road due to stiff regulations.
Green is a disrupter and Lyft is one of the key players drastically changing personal mobility, the transportation industry, and the auto industry’s traditional car ownership model.
To stay ahead, automakers and dealers will need to adapt to changes in mobility and find new opportunities to capitalize on it.
