German premium auto maker BMW reported Friday it was joining forces with US computer chip giant Intel and Israeli computer vision and machine-learning firm Mobileye to develop self-driving cars.

"The three companies are collaborating to bring solutions for highly and fully automated driving into series production by 2021," a joint statement said.

BMW noted that the alliance aims to find solutions, which would enable drivers not only to take their hands off the steering wheel, but also reach a stage where they could take their eyes off the road and, ultimately, their minds off driving. The final stage, it added, would then be cars without a human driver inside.

"This establishes the opportunity for self-driving fleets by 2021 and lays the foundation for entirely new business models in a connected, mobile world," the partners said.

Not yet safe

The announcement came as US e-car company Tesla admitted a driver was killed in a car crash in Florida in May while using the autopilot self-driving mechanism on one of its models.

But BMW, Intel and Mobileye insisted that while the path to get to a fully autonomous world would be complex, it would eventually be a safer world.

"The future of automated driving promises to change lives and societies for the better," the three firms argued in their joint statement.

hg/sri (dpa, AFP)