![](https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/images-by-url-td/content/2017/11/optimus-ride-cars.jpg?w=1080)
![](https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/images-by-url-td/content/2017/11/optimus-ride-cars.jpg?w=1080)
A self-driving auto technology company named Optimus Ride has secured a fresh $18 million in funding from a group of venture capitalists led by Greycroft Partners to immediately grow its vehicle fleet and make strategic hires.
The startup, a spin-off from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology is designing a vehicle with Level 4 autonomous technology for electric vehicle fleets.
“Autonomy is currently revolutionizing the transportation industry,” said John Elton, Partner at Greycroft in a news release. “The changes will impact not only transportation users’ free time, but the broader world with a safer, more environmentally friendly and inclusive transportation system.”
![message-editor%2F1509643924162-optimusride-2.jpg](https://s3.amazonaws.com/the-drive-staging/message-editor%2F1509643924162-optimusride-2.jpg)
A recent study by Strategy Analytics estimates the global passenger economy for self-driving vehicles to be around $7 trillion per year by 2050.
Back in June, the company received approval from the Massachusetts Department of Transportation to test its driverless vehicles on a nearly three-mile stretch of public roads in the city of Boston.
![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/wc9gGRAK0WQ/hqdefault.jpg)
Google’s self-driving car spinoff, Waymo, showed off its own driverless technology to reporters on Monday at its California testing facility.
But are consumers ready for their driverless future? According to a recent MIT study, 48 percent of respondents said they would NEVER purchase a car that completely drives itself.