NissanNissanJapan, 1932 > present159 models
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says that autonomous driving technology will be commercially viable in multiple cars by 2020 for affordable prices. It is also working with MIT, Stanford, Carnegie Mellon, Oxford and The University of Tokyo to further develop the technology. It is also building a dedicated test track in Japan to further develop the tech that will be complete by the end of 2014. 

The test track will attempt to simulate real roads including real townscapes with actual buildings to test the technology in as close to real world conditions as possible.

Now I am committing to be ready to introduce a new ground-breaking technology, Autonomous Drive, by 2020, and we are on track to realize it," said Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn.

Much of the technology for autonomous driving already exists. Various Nissan vehicles are already available laser scanners, around view camera monitors and steer-by-wire. It has even tested the technology with Nissan LeafsNissan LEAFJapan, 2009 > present29 versions
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and shown that it can work on highways. The challenge is making it safe enough to work in all real world situations. 

Nissan claims that the technology will make driving even safer because the collision-avoidance system can react faster than a person can. In the US, 93% of accidents are caused by human error, and Nissan claims that the software can do better.