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Video: MIT thinks 3,000 Uber rides could replace all the taxis in NYC
Initially, these will be delivery vans (electric or gas — I don’t see CEO Jeff Bezos waiting for electric tech or driverless tech to mature) that will be driven by good ole humans.
These vehicles will serve double duty for Whole Foods and local Amazon deliveries, and when they aren’t delivering, they will pick up passengers and have limited things for sale on the van like snacks and drinks.
Amazon already offers restaurant and grocery delivery along the lines of UberEATS, with Amazon Restaurants and Prime Now, so it isn’t that far out.
I also see it offering an affordable pick-up-from-the-house-and-drop-off-to-work service for commuters in the suburbs who don’t want the hassle of owning a primary or secondary car that just sits in a parking lot all day long.
With AWS, Amazon can use big data and other kinds of analytics and computer learning techniques to schedule morning and afternoon pick-up routes as well as for dispatch.
Potentially, I can see Amazon’s next purchase being Uber or Lyft and cleaning house.
Read also: Alphabet leads $1B investment round in Lyft | Lyft launches self-driving car pilot in San Francisco | Lyft president envisions self-driving future beginning in 2021
I don’t see them developing a unique vehicle like Apple, which might be some kind of Syd Mead-esque, pod-like thing for up to four people.
Amazon might work with Tesla or an established auto manufacturer to produce customized multi-person vehicles, but it doesn’t have to because it can go totally off the shelf.
Amazon can easily capitalize on its Whole Foods acquisition by making each location a base of operations for these vehicles to fuel up, charge, and have driver shifts.
If either of these two things come to fruition, the auto industry is going to be severely disrupted. Rental car companies almost certainly will face additional consolidation, and we will see the traditional ride-share companies face major challenges. They may disappear entirely, especially when driverless electric tech becomes not just technologically mature but more accepted.
I love my cars. But I love my freedom and not having to worry about a vehicle even more.
Are you up for a trip in Apple cars or a PrimeRide? Talk Back and Let Me Know.
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Amazon
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