Fiat Chrysler said to be in talks with Google for technical partnership

Now, is it Google car helping Fiat Chrysler or the other way around?

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) and Alphabet's Google car are reportedly in late-stage talks on a technical partnership, according to a CNBC tweet.

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At first blush, it might seem that Google is seeking car production help from FCA, as Google doesn't have much experience in the car-making realm, aside from its prototype cars.

Likely, however, it's FCA that is keen to partner with Google and glean the tech giant's massive experience with self-driving cars. That's because FCA, unlike hometown rivals Ford and GM, hasn't done much in autonomous tech development.

Now, these reported technical partnership talks shouldn't be conflated with FCA CEO Sergio Marchionne's attempts to partner with another carmakers. Recently, both Ford and GM have declined Marchionne's partnership offers.

Last month, self-proclaimed Apple-freak Marchionne said he would love to help Apple build its first car. There's been no word whether Apple has any interest on taking Marchionne up on the offer.

It's not clear what Google would stand to gain from opening up its technical information to FCA, which raises red flags on the validity of the report. Regardless, FCA could use a tech infusion.

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