Google’s driverless car (or self-driving car) project has been one of intrigue, with the company’s vehicles now out and about in San Francisco on public highways. Google has decided to allow artists from different cities to showcase their artwork on the company’s prototype vehicles. According to Google’s own Paint the Town page, “We’re inviting artists in select cities to submit art to be featured on our prototype vehicles. Imagine spotting your artwork on one of the world’s first self-driving cars!”
The select cities, at this point, start with California cities but have spread out to Austin, Texas, for example. So far, Google has selected 10 winners, with some of the fine artwork consisting of the green spaces of a neighborhood, the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, the sunset view from Highway 101, along with others such as “Talk of the Town,” a piece in which birds are “chatting,” children are outdoors playing together on the monkey bars, and so on. Google told artists about the common theme of “my community, my neighbors” that would guide the artwork creation process.
These expression artwork pieces help customize the experience for some, but the artwork idea may even become an idea for which Google could prosper in the future. After all, some artists may very well use the artwork on Google’s self-driving cars to “advertise” their artistic abilities, in order to draw attention to their business and perhaps make some form of profit from it. As for Google’s self-driving cars, the new artwork customization could become a new privilege for those who are early adopters and the first to purchase Google’s self-driving cars in the future. After all, it’s no secret that Android users enjoy customization and love making their devices their own; why not self-driving cars?
