It’s not exactly the merger that Sergio Marchionne has been looking for, but it appears that Fiat Chrysler Automobiles is partnering with Google to build an autonomous Chrysler Pacifica.
Bloomberg reports that the autonomous minivans will be prototypes for the time being, noting that the project marks the beginning of a multiphase plan by the two companies to create production-ready self-driving vehicles in the future. Google, for its part, has completed more than 1.4 million miles of driverless testing on its autonomous-vehicle technology and unveiled its own prototype autonomous car in May 2014. The tech giant has been in search of an established automotive industry partner for some time. A collaboration with Ford was announced late last year, but little has been said since. Meanwhile, Automotive News notes that a tie-up with General Motors fell through after the two companies couldn’t come to an agreement on ownership of technology and data. GM has since purchased  Cruise Automation, a company that specializes in autonomous-driving tech.

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Although no formal announcement has been made by FCA or Google, unnamed sources told Bloomberg that the partnership will allow both FCA and Google to cooperate with other companies in developing autonomous-vehicle t...