General Motors headquarters in Detroit, Michigan (Bill Pugliano/Getty Images)American automobile manufacturer General Motors (GM) plans to launch a pilot programme that will allow vehicle owners to rent out their vehicles when they’re not using them – similar to the online hospitality marketplace Airbnb – reports Bloomberg.
GM plans to roll out its pilot project during the summer months through its car-sharing platform Maven. Owners of GM vehicles could then list their vehicles on the platform which other users can then rent with the revenue being shared by GM and the vehicle owners.
The Detroit-based car manufacturer plans to grow the business into a full-fledged venture in order to make a transition from a vehicle manufacturer to a mobility service provider. Although GM’s stocks have stagnated over the years, it rose sharply last October when plans for ride-sharing and self-driving or autonomous vehicles gained favour with investors.
With a market value of $53 billion, GM’s Maven currently rents vehicles to drivers. Electronic vehicle (EV) manufacturer Tesla too has hinted at a possible ‘peer-to-peer’ vehicle sharing network in future, however founder Elon Musk’s vision plan makes it clear that it will come up only with completely autonomous vehicles.
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