Google steering clear of automaking

Google is steering clear of becoming an automaker, even as the company works to developing a self-driving car, according to a Reuters report. 

Google representative Philipp Justus said at the Frankfurt Auto Show in Germany this week that the tech company is planning to work with existing car manufacturers to introduce self-drivers cars to the market, according to the report. 

“That is not something we could do alone,” said Justus, who is Google’s managing director for central and eastern Europe 

{mosads}”Google also does not intend to become a car manufacturer,” he continued. 

Google made waves in the U.S. auto industry earlier this week when it announced the hiring of former Hyundai CEO John Krafcik to run its self-driving car division. 

Google has been working for years to develop a prototype for a driverless car that will be fully autonomous and be built without traditional auto features including steering wheels, brakes or gas pedals. 

Krafcik, who led Hyundai from 2008 to 2013, confirmed on Twitter over the weekend that he has been hired to run the Google self-driving car project. 

“Yes, true: I’m joining the Google Self-Driving Car project in late September,” he wrote. 

“This is a great opportunity to help Google develop the enormous potential of self-driving cars. I can’t wait to get started,” he continued. “Self-driving cars could save 1000s of lives, give people greater mobility & free us from things we find frustrating about driving today.” 

Lawmakers have pondered the regulations that will be necessary for driverless cars as companies such as Google have pushed to develop the technology. 

Members of Congress have expressed a mix of excitement and trepidation at the thought of computer-powered cars being operated on U.S. roads.