Robotics & Automation News

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Autonomous Vehicles

Swift Navigation raises $100 million to bring its autonomous navigation systems to market

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Swift Navigation, a San Francisco-based tech firm developing GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) and precise positioning technology for automotive ADAS (advanced driver-assistance systems) and autonomy, industrial machine control, commercial transportation, mobile and emerging mass-market applications, has completed a $100 million financing round.

The Series D Round was led by SK Inc and Potentum Partners with strong support from Swift’s existing investors, including New Enterprise Associates (NEA), Eclipse Ventures and EPIQ Capital Group.

The Series D Round included new investors: FM Capital, OVN Capital, TELUS Ventures, TWM Venture Co., Buckley Ventures, Schox Venture Capital and additional independent investors. To date, the company has raised over $200 million in funding. [Read more…] about Swift Navigation raises $100 million to bring its autonomous navigation systems to market

Auve Tech launches new generation self-driving vehicle

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Estonian company Auve Tech has launched a new generation self-driving vehicle.

MiCa is the latest self-driving shuttle from Auve Tech, which specializes in developing and producing autonomous vehicles.

The startup says MiCa takes safety, practicality and self-driving to “a new level” and allows autonomous driving in various weather and traffic conditions. [Read more…] about Auve Tech launches new generation self-driving vehicle

Study Shows US Drivers Believe Partially Automated Vehicles Are Fully Self-Driving

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US drivers may be treating their partially-autonomous vehicles as fully self-driving, according to a new study.

Research shows that owners of advanced systems, such as General Motors’ Super Cruise or Tesla’s Autopilot, believe that these technologies have more capabilities than they actually do.

Academics are concerned that such findings could lead to more unnecessary collisions in the future. [Read more…] about Study Shows US Drivers Believe Partially Automated Vehicles Are Fully Self-Driving

Uber and Nuro agree 10-year partnership for autonomous food deliveries starting in California and Texas

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Uber Technologies and Nuro, an autonomous vehicle technology company, have agreed a multi-year partnership to use Nuro’s autonomous, electric vehicles for food deliveries in the United States.

Uber Eats consumers will be able to order meals and goods delivered by Nuro’s zero-occupant autonomous delivery vehicles, which run on public roads and are built specifically to carry food and other goods.

The partnership will kick off this fall with deliveries in Houston, Texas and Mountain View, California. Uber and Nuro plan to expand the service to the greater Bay Area. [Read more…] about Uber and Nuro agree 10-year partnership for autonomous food deliveries starting in California and Texas

Motional and Uber partner to offer robotaxi rides

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Motional and Uber Technologies have reached a commercial agreement to offer fully driverless rides using Motional’s new all-electric IONIQ 5-based robotaxis.

The 10-year, multimarket agreement creates the opportunity for effective scaling and broad adoption of autonomous vehicles by pairing Motional’s advanced driverless technology with Uber’s network of millions of customers.

The companies will strategically deploy the service in cities across the US, with the first trips expected to start later this year. Motional and Uber have a shared vision for autonomous vehicles to offer an affordable, convenient, and safe transportation option for everyday travel. [Read more…] about Motional and Uber partner to offer robotaxi rides

Lyft plans ‘fully autonomous future’ as it starts driverless car rides to customers in Austin, Texas

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Riders in Austin, Texas can now select an autonomous vehicle in the Lyft app to help them get around their city.

This marks the first time that a commercial autonomous service is available in Austin, Texas and marks the third city where Lyft riders can hail an autonomous ride along with Miami, Florida and Las Vegas, Nevada.

Most people’s first autonomous vehicle experience will be on a ride hailing network like Lyft. For riders in Austin, this new ride mode looks just like any other Lyft ride. Riders can hail an autonomous vehicle (a Ford self-driving car powered by Argo AI technology) directly in the Lyft app for the same price as a normal Lyft ride. [Read more…] about Lyft plans ‘fully autonomous future’ as it starts driverless car rides to customers in Austin, Texas

Autonomous truck maker Einride launches in Germany

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Autonomous truck startup Einride has launched into Europe’s largest transportation market – Germany. In conjunction with the official launch, Einride has signed an impressive list of local partners including global appliance leader Electrolux.

Robert Falck, founder and CEO of Einride, says: “Germany is in the driving seat of Europe; where it goes others follow suit.

“We have the opportunity and technology to bring the biggest change to the freight industry since the invention of the internal combustion engine and are ready to join forces with local partners to make transportation history.” [Read more…] about Autonomous truck maker Einride launches in Germany

Mercedes-Benz claims its ‘Drive Pilot’ is world’s first internationally certified Level 3 automated car technology

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Mercedes-Benz says its Drive Pilot automated driver assistance system has become the world’s first internationally certified Level 3 automated car technology. The company adds that it backs redundancy for safe conditionally automated driving.

When it comes to conditionally automated driving (SAE Level 3), safety and reliability are the top priorities for Mercedes-Benz. Drive Pilot is therefore based on a system architecture that enables safe control of all situations that could potentially arise.

To this end, braking, steering, power supply and some parts of the sensor system are designed with physical and functional redundancy. By adopting this safety‑focused approach to system design, Mercedes-Benz is setting completely new benchmarks in automated driving. [Read more…] about Mercedes-Benz claims its ‘Drive Pilot’ is world’s first internationally certified Level 3 automated car technology

Finally, Ford Plans to Release a Test Self-Driving Car by the End of 2022

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Ford plans to release a test self-driving car by 2022! This news comes as a surprise as the company has been lagging behind its competitors when it comes to autonomous technology.

The Ford Motor Company has announced that it intends to release a fully autonomous vehicle within the next five years. The car, which will be available for both public and commercial use, will be part of the company’s larger push to invest in and develop self-driving technology.

While Ford is not the first automaker to pledge to release a self-driving car – Volvo, Mercedes-Benz, and BMW have all made similar announcements – it is the first to set a specific timeline for doing so. [Read more…] about Finally, Ford Plans to Release a Test Self-Driving Car by the End of 2022

Autonomous trucks make the ‘most compelling case’ for automation in commercial vehicles, says report

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Autonomous trucks make “the most compelling case for automation in commercial vehicles”, according to a new report.

The new IDTechEx study, Heavy-Duty Autonomous Vehicles 2023-2043: Trucks, Buses & Roboshuttles, has found significant activity in the autonomous heavy-duty and commercial vehicle space.

Today, there are hundreds of vehicles around the globe in various stages of trialing, piloting, and even some companies teetering on the precipice of fully unmanned commercial deployment. Each industry has unique strengths and challenges, here are some key findings from the report. [Read more…] about Autonomous trucks make the ‘most compelling case’ for automation in commercial vehicles, says report