Driverless car software developer nuTonomy will integrate its self-driving software and sensor system into the new Peugeot 3008 for on-road testing later this year.
The ultimate goal of the partnership between the two companies is the deployment of thousands of fully autonomous cars in cities worldwide.
nuTonomy and Groupe PSA– which owns the Peugeot brand – say the system will initially use the Peugeot 3008s for on-road testing of fully autonomous cars in Singapore. The Peugeot 3008 was recently named 2017 European Car of the Year.
Under the initial phase of the partnership, nuTonomy will install its software, along with specialized sensors and computing platforms, into Peugeot 3008 vehicles that have been customized by PSA’s innovation teams.
nuTonomy expects to complete the integration of its autonomous vehicle system this summer, with on-road testing of the self-driving 3008s beginning in Singapore in September.
Seamless integration of autonomous vehicle software with vehicle hardware is viewed by both companies as a critical step toward deploying driverless cars at scale, over extended life cycles.
This partnership provides an opportunity for both companies to study autonomous vehicle system performance, as well as the end-to-end user experience of an on-demand autonomous vehicle mobility service in urban use cases.
This collaboration bolsters Groupe PSA’s ambition of becoming the preferred mobility provider for customers worldwide, as described in the company’s strategic plan “Push to Pass” issued in April 2016.
This collaboration, which is being implemented under the Groupe PSA’s “Autonomous Vehicle for All” program, will bring to market on-demand mobility solutions offering full autonomy.
Anne Laliron, head of the business lab at Groupe PSA, says: “This collaboration is a significant step towards fully autonomous vehicles, which will enable us to offer different mobility solutions to our customers.
“We are excited to work together with nuTonomy’s team of software and robotics experts to make the concept of self-driving PSA cars more and more concrete.”
Karl lagnemma, CEO and co-founder of nuTonomy, says: “We’re confident that working with Groupe PSA will bring us closer to our goal of deploying a safe, efficient, fully autonomous mobility-on-demand transportation service for urban driving environments. We look forward to future collaboration opportunities with PSA.”
Following the initial phase of this partnership, the companies will consider expanding their on-road autonomous vehicles testing initiative to other major cities around the world.
Groupe PSA’s business lab and innovation division are launching this collaboration to identify and evaluate new business opportunities, particularly in the mobility and digital fields.
nuTonomy has been conducting public trials of an on-demand autonomous vehicles mobility service in Singapore since August 2016.
The partnership with Groupe PSA expands nuTonomy’s test fleet, which operates in one-north, the autonomous vehicles test bed designated by the Singapore Land Transport Authority.
Singapore actively supports the development of new mobility solutions, as it seeks to embrace a growing population while maximizing the efficient use of infrastructure. nuTonomy’s founders and the LTA have been research and development partners in the development of commercial autonomous vehicles services since 2010.
