“I would argue that what’s happening with other companies is more of a marketing stunt,” Zimmer tells Inc. He declined to state names of companies to which he was referring, saying, “Not gonna be specific, but I think you can make your guesses.”

He describes these unnamed efforts as examples of features similar to Tesla’s “autopilot” mode. What would truly be impressive, he says, would be demonstrating vehicle technology that eliminates the need for a steering wheel altogether.