I have question given that 2018 is the date to deploy test vehicles how much time do they need to their tech operationally mature?

I see in the article that they acquired a self-driving tech startup but that doesn't say much about how much experience that start up brings, and it not like there's many veterans in this field.

Will they be playing catch up with Tesla, Google et al for years to come or will the tech soon start becoming commoditized?