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Private rental company Addison Lee has signed a strategic partnership with the UK software start-up Oxbotica to offer Londoners self-driving services by 2021.
Addison Lee said the two companies will collaborate on the technology development, deployment and operation of autonomous cars to provide discounted taxi services in the capital. In the long run, he also hopes to expand the technology to include corporate shuttle, airport and campus services.
For now, they will work on creating digital maps of more than 250,000 kilometers of public roads in and around London. Subsequently, the partnership will expand to New York and other international destinations.
Read more: Uber plans to sell its shares to an autonomous unit
The executive director of Addison Lee, Andy Boland, said that this agreement symbolized the company's willingness to be "in the vanguard" of the future of transportation, in the purpose of revolutionizing travel around the city.
However, this partnership also reflects the company's growing fervor in the fight against the rise of its biggest rival, Uber, which should be released next year with a valuation of up to $ 120 billion (91, £ 7 billion).
Addison Lee has recently begun talks with the banks on a £ 300 million refinancing plan to strengthen its assets as part of its expansion abroad.
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