Around the world, Uber boasts an impressive 149 million customers. Over the years, the platform has expanded to offering not just rides, but also food delivery, freight services, and even package deliveries and/or pickups.

In the years to come, fans of the rideshare app can look forward to even more expansion. As a matter of fact, that expansion is quickly coming down the pipeline sooner than some folks may have expected.

Earlier this month, Uber and self-driving car company Cruise announced their mutual partnership. In joining forces, the rideshare service is aiming to have self-driving cars pick up their customers.

While the notion of autonomous vehicles is controversial to some people, both Uber and Cruise are painting this as a positive step forward.

What to know about the union between Uber and Cruise

CEOs of both organizations spoke out about their new alignment and prospective goals moving forward.

According to Dara Khosrowshahi, the Uber CEO, partnering with Cruise will allow riders and cities around the world to experience the benefits of "autonomous technology" in a safe, efficient manner. As for the official operations launch, that's projected to kick off in 2025.

Marc Whitten, the CEO of Cruise, release similar statements. Per Whitten, driverless cars will lead to "safer streets" and a new urban mobility era. Cruise presently operates controlled self-driving cars in Arizona and Texas. Though this new partnership with Uber is going to help the company significantly expand on a global scale.

There's always a tradeoff

Many folks in favor of autonomous vehicles believe they'll increase safety on the road and reduce fatal accidents. After all, built-in technology can avert car accidents, detect red lights, and perform a series of other useful tasks.

However, automation continues to be a touchy subject. Some people believe the Uber-Cruise partnership will remove jobs from drivers who rely upon them to pay the bills. Others with concerns have accused large businesses of prioritizing profit margins over the wellbeing of their workers.

Nevertheless, automation and AI continue to play increasingly greater roles across multiple industries. What does this mean for human workers? Only time will tell.