Dive Brief:

• Aptiv, an automated driving technology developer, partnered with ride-hailing service Lyft to provide driverless car transportation during the Consumer Electronics Show next week in Las Vegas, per a statement. The demonstration will let mobile users ride in a driverless car to more than 20 destinations around the Las Vegas Strip during the exhibition Jan. 9-12.

• Lyft passengers will be able request a self-driving ride from the Las Vegas Convention Center's Gold Lot, where an exhibit will showcase the positive effect that automated cars will have on people and communities. The self-driven vehicles will have a human safety driver in the front seat and an in-car host to offer more information about the technology.

• Aptiv's platform will be integrated with Lyft's smart dispatching technology to make it easy for consumers to order a ride from a driverless car. Aptiv recently acquired nuTonomy, which is running an automated driving pilot with Lyft in Boston.

Insight:

Aptiv and Lyft’s automated driving experience follows Aptiv’s previous demonstrations of its technology at CES, where tech companies show off their latest products coming to the market. Last year, Aptiv’s demonstration included a 6.3-mile driving loop of Las Vegas streets and highways in 2017. This year’s exhibit adds the element of ride-hailing using Lyft’s mobile app as Aptiv prepares to scale up its production of self-driving systems in 2019.

Driverless technology is expected to be a major area of focus at this year’s CES, according to the conference’s list of exhibitors that includes 12 self-driving companies. Last year, carmakers and tech firms showed off their latest innovations at the show. Ford showcased its Fusion hybrid autonomous vehicle and said it was adding Amazon’s digital assistant Alexa to its vehicles. Delphi, a parts maker that is reinventing itself as a tech company, provided a 20-minute drive around the streets of Las Vegas in a modified Audi Q5 to demonstrate the advancements to the company's self-driving technology.

During the conference this year, the city of Las Vegas will be operating a fleet of self-driving shuttles developed by Boston transit firm Keolis and French tech company Navya, the Verge reported. The companies also plan to deploy a fleet of all-electric autonomous taxis. Nayva has asked that people who are interested in sampling the self-driving taxis book seats in advance.