Nvidia partners with Hella and ZF to improve safety of self-driving vehicles

Nvidia has formed a strategic partnership with ZF and Hella to deliver AI technology with the New Car Assessment Program safety certification for the mass deployment of self-driving vehicles. 

ZF, one of the industry’s largest automotive suppliers, and Hella, a leading tier 1 supplier of camera perception software and sensor technologies, will provide customers with a complete self-driving system that integrates front camera units, as well as supporting software functions and radar systems.

Using the Nvidia Drive PX AI platform, the partnership aims to produce the highest NCAP safety ratings for passenger cars, while also addressing commercial vehicle and off-highway applications. 

Nvidia Drive PX offers both NCAP safety and self-driving capabilities on a single platform ready for production.

Nvidia Drive PX will enable ZF and Hella to develop software for scalable systems starting from modern driver assistance systems that connect their advanced imaging and radar sensor technologies for autonomous driving functionality.

Jensen Huang, founder and CEO, Nvidia, says: “Creating a self-driving car is one of society’s most important endeavors – and one of the most challenging to deliver.

“Our work with ZF and Hella will bring AI self-driving solutions that include NCAP safety for millions of cars worldwide.”

Dr Stefan Sommer, CEO of ZF, says: “We are building up a powerful ecosystem step by step. Earlier this year ZF became the first supplier to adopt Nvidia AI technology for cars and commercial vehicles in the ZF ProAI box.

“Just a few days ago Hella and ZF joined forces in a non-exclusive partnership, and now together we are partnering with Nvidia to make our roads safer and to support the development of autonomous driving functions.”

Dr Rolf Breidenbach, CEO at Hella, says: “Combining our expertise in front camera perception software and radar sensor technologies with Nvidia’s expertise in deep learning hardware and software will drive technological developments for broad adoption of self-driving capabilities across many transportation segments.”