Worldwide sales of autonomous cars are forecast to reach 20 million units by the year of 2035 on the back of rapid development of related technologies, a report said Sunday.
"The smart car market will expand to a large extent as self-driving cars are expected to hit the road around 2020," said the report released by the state-funded Korea Institute for Industrial Economics and Trade.
Google’s self-driving vehicle. (Yonhap)
It said the autonomous car industry will expand sharply in the coming years to hit annual sales of 20 million in 2035.
Global carmakers and information technology firms like Google Inc., BMW and Mercedes-Benz have focused on developing autonomous vehicles, while the South Korean government has churned out measures to encourage local companies to join the global effort.
The KIET report said the government should come up with comprehensive policies on autonomous cars to create a business-friendly ecosystem to help companies grow and go abroad. (Yonhap)