Its founder, Dr. Sheila Nirenberg, has developed a machine-vision platform that Ford said can bring humanlike intelligence to self-driving cars.
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Civil Maps: Ford has invested in Berkeley, California-based Civil Maps to further develop high-resolution 3D mapping capabilities. This isn’t just about building an autonomous vehicle, explained the CEO.
The US carmaker said last week that it is investing in or collaborating with four startups to speed up autonomous-vehicle development. In May, US Transportation Secretary, Anthony Foxx met with his Israeli counterpart in Washington DC to sign an agreement to work together on key issues such as a US advisory role in the development of a center for the development of autonomous vehicles in the Israeli coastal city of Netanya.
It is bittersweet for me, as I have been talking with them for over five years now, excited by numerous cool ideas percolating back at Google, leading up to the spinout of 25 great engineers from the autonomous driving team earlier this year. In an August 18 interview with Business Insider, he described a future where there would be 50,000 to 100,000 human drivers for a million cars using Uber in California’s Bay Area.
Summoning the automated cars via the mobile app, customers won’t have to put up with any awkward taxi driver chat and will instead sit back and let the radar-guided vehicle transport them to their destination. Companies such as Google and Uber threaten to upend the industry by turning auto owners and drivers into passengers who simply pay for a ride.
Kalanick told Business Insider this week that drivers likely won’t be replaced entirely and argued the company’s efforts will create more jobs in the long run. “In absolute figures. Of course, in percentage, it’s down”. With this, Ford is nearly doubling its Silicon Valley team.
Carmakers have realized that they must go to the nation’s technology center to find the software expertise needed to make the autos of tomorrow. But, unlike other automakers, Ford’s self-driving cars won’t have a steering wheel, gas or brake pedals.
The vehicles will be integrated into Uber’s regular web-based taxi-hailing service, and passengers will be notified of the self-driving technology in their ride before disembarking, explains Bloomberg.
Ford Motor (NYSE:F) announced its intent to have fully autonomous vehicles in commercial operation by 2021 in the ride-hailing or ride-sharing industry. Traditional automakers now directly employ hundreds in Silicon Valley, which is also home to Palo Alto-based Tesla Motors.
In the past few years, the automotive industry has been racing towards a common goal: everybody wants to be the first to offer a fully autonomous vehicle.
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The important thing to mention is that Nvidia technology is inside as the Volvo XC90 is using DRIVE PX 2 as the heart of the self-driving vehicle.
