AImotive launches self-driving automotive technology powered by artificial intelligence
AImotive – formerly known as AdasWorks – claims to be the first to enable an artificial intelligence ecosystem for autonomous driving regardless of location, driving style or driving conditions
AImotive has launched what it says is a “full stack technology solution and the most powerful artificial intelligence software” for the automotive industry, designed to provide self-driving vehicles better safety, improved comfort and increased productivity.
AImotive used to be called AdasWorks, and the new name reflects the broader vision to “bring global accessibility to self-driving vehicles, faster and safer than any other company in the world”.
The AImotive product suite delivers the robust technology required to operate self-driving vehicles in all conditions, and adapts in real-time to different driving styles and cultures, says the company.
In addition to the name change, AImotive also announced its expansion into the US market with the opening of a new office in Mountain View, California.
Laszlo Kishonti, CEO and founder of AImotive, says: “AImotive has experienced phenomenal growth since our launch in 2015, growing from 15 engineers to more than 120 researchers and developers, including 16 PhDs.
“Our team of AI and machine learning experts approach the driving experience from a global perspective, and recognize the need to create a quality experience across diverse climates, driving styles and cultures. Our new name, AImotive, allows us to better highlight the unique capabilities we bring to autonomous driving, specifically a more affordable, accessible self-driving solution capable of powering L5 vehicles safely in any condition.”
AImotive offers the only L5 architecture capable of robust scalability across the global market, utilizing cameras as the primary sensors for greater affordability and accessibility.
Unlike other solutions on the market, AImotive’s full stack software does not require a mandatory chip, and it uses the power of artificial intelligence to “see” fine detail and predict behavior, making it easier to manage common driving concerns such as poor visibility and adverse conditions.
AImotive’s training technique is also scalable with a real-time simulator tool that trains the AI for a wide variety of traffic scenarios and weather conditions.
AImotive says it has launched the “world’s first AI ecosystem for autonomous driving” with a customizable software framework, and provides a full spectrum of automated driving functionality, enabling original equipment manufacturers to move faster and more efficiently into fully autonomous car production. The AImotive suite of products are in three categories, as detailed by the company below.
aiDrive
A full technology stack comprised of a Recognition Engine, Location Engine, Motion Engine and Control Engine.
Recognition Engine is a continuously learning engine that combines and analyses sensor data with AImotive’s pixel-precise segmentation tool to recognize up to 100 different object classes such as pedestrians, bicycles, animals, buildings and obstacles.
Location Engine provides a globally-scalable solution for precise self-localization of the vehicle by not requiring HD maps for precise positioning but using 3D landmark point data on top of conventional GPS positioning.
Motion Engine enables real-time tracking of moving objects, predicting future speed, location and behavior, allowing for optimal routing of the car even in emergency situations.
Control Engine is the execution component that manages acceleration, braking, steering, gear shifting, etc. as well as auxiliary functions such as turn signals, headlights and the car horn.
aiKit
Incorporates a complete ecosystem of tools that accelerate the training of the AI by enabling faster data collection and annotation, complete testing with real-time simulation of various driving conditions and providing validated over-the-air updates for maximum travel safety.
aiWare
Performance-efficient hardware design for automotive embedded solutions, offering low power consumption, high bandwidth and low latency neural network computation.
While the goal of aiWare is to help bring truly efficient AI hardware to the market quicker, aiDrive itself is designed to be processor agnostic, allowing for seamless integration with GPU, FPGA or embedded technology based systems.
Launched in 2015, AImotive has raised $10.5 million USD in seed and Series A funding to date, from investors Robert Bosch Venture Capital, Nvidia, Inventure, Draper Associates, Day One Capital Fund Management and Tamares.