The distinctive Google robot cars developed by the internet company are being phased out after around three years on the road. When announcing the move on Tuesday night, managers from Google's sister company Waymo emphasized that the small electric two-seaters were intended for experimentation from the outset and not for mass production. In future, Waymo will concentrate on integrating its robot car technology into vehicles from other manufacturers. More than 500 Pacifica minivans from Fiat Chrysler are currently being equipped with it. Families in Arizona are to use them in everyday life on a trial basis.

The presentation of Google's own cars in 2014 caused the car industry to sit up and take notice. The internet company had already emphasized at the time that it did not want to become a car manufacturer itself. But the spherical vehicles with their friendly smiley faces could be seen as a prototype for a robot cab network in cities. Industry observers speculated that Google could use the vehicles to provide a blueprint for future mobility in cities, and bosses of major manufacturers emphasized that they would not become contract manufacturers of cars based on the Internet company's plans.

Google clearly had more far-reaching plans for the electric vehicles - the company announced its intention to eventually dispense with traditional control elements such as steering wheels or pedals in the cars and leave control entirely to the computer. This did not happen during regular testing: the US authorities emphasized that they still consider steering wheels and pedals to be indispensable. However, in a test drive in Austin, Texas, in 2015, for example, one of the Google robot cars drove completely autonomously without any human intervention.

Technology for vehicles from other manufacturers

At peak times, around 70 prototypes with the name 'Firefly' were on the road in Google's home town of Mountain View and in Austin, Texas. However, they only offered limited comfort and had a top speed of around 40 km/h, which often irritated other drivers. After the robot car project was outsourced to Google's sister company Waymo at the end of 2016 under the leadership of experienced car manager John Krafcik, it became clear that the focus in future would be on installing the technology in vehicles from other manufacturers.

Google had already put converted Toyotas with its technology on the road in 2009 and startled car manufacturers with the public presentation of the project a year later. In the meantime, many manufacturers and suppliers as well as numerous start-ups and other tech companies such as Apple, Uber and Intel are also working on technology for self-driving cars. In California alone, 33 companies currently have a permit to test autonomous vehicles. It is assumed that largely self-driving cars will be able to hit the roads on a regular basis in three or four years.

The Waymo parent company Alphabet is still hoping to place its technology in the vehicles of other manufacturers. Ford was considered a candidate for some time - but according to media reports, talks broke down at the end of 2015 due to differences in the companies' ideas. Ford then focused on developing its own robot cars and recently appointed the manager responsible for this, Jim Hackett, as Group CEO.