Uber Gives Glimpse of Self-Driving Test Car in Pittsburgh

Uber is finally giving the world a peek at the car it’s using to test self-driving technology.

The ride-hailing pioneer posted a photo of a hybrid Ford Fusion outfitted with a variety of sensors and high-resolution cameras to gather mapping data while honing autonomous driving capabilities. The car can be found tooling around the byways of Pittsburgh, home to what Uber calls its Advanced Technologies Center.

San Francisco-based Uber is throwing its support behind technology that lets cars drive themselves, relying less on human drivers. In a sign of the convergence amid startups, the auto industry, and established tech companies, Uber recently joined a coalition that includes Alphabet Inc.’s Google and Ford Motor Co. to advocate for safety regulations for self-driving cars and help bring them to American roads.

"Real-world testing is critical to our efforts to develop self-driving technology," Uber said in a Web post. "Self-driving cars have the potential to save millions of lives and improve quality of life for people around the world."

Lest humans fret, Uber points out in the blog that when the car is in self-driving mode, a "trained driver" will be in the driver’s seat keeping an eye on things.

To contact the author of this story: Tom Giles in New York at tgiles5@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Josh Petri at jpetri4@bloomberg.net.