[230915] #Stack AV #Volkswagen #Huawei

1. Huawei, Seres launch latest smart SUV with autonomous driving tech

• • Huawei and Seres have jointly launched a new sport utility vehicle called the M7 with advanced autonomous driving features.
  • The M7 can autonomously navigate urban roads and expressways without relying on high-definition maps.
  • It incorporates the second version of Huawei’s autonomous driving system (ADS) that has accumulated a reservoir of traffic scenarios since its April launch.
  • The ADS requires one manual intervention per 200 kilometers during long-haul trips and can navigate urban scenarios expertly.
  • The vehicle is equipped with 27 sensors, including lidar, radar assemblies, and high-definition cameras to enhance its autonomous driving capabilities.
  • It features the Harmony operating system, allowing seamless integration with other Huawei products, such as smartphones and tablets.

2. Volkswagen and Horizon Robotics make headway in self-driving joint venture

• • Volkswagen’s software subsidiary, Cariad, and Horizon Robotics announced a joint venture aimed at enhancing Level 2 assisted driving and other intelligent driving features.
  • Volkswagen invested USD 2.4 billion in the joint venture and holds a controlling 60% stake. Over 100 employees from Horizon Robotics’ software algorithm team will join the project.
  • Horizon Robotics’ co-founder and CTO, Huang Chang, will lead the joint venture, referred to as “VW” within the company.
  • Intelligent driving is highly competitive in the Chinese market, with European automakers slower to adapt.
  • Volkswagen’s Cariad faced a USD 2 billion loss and struggled in the Chinese market, resulting in a focus on technology and software development.
  • Volkswagen also invested in Chinese EV maker Xpeng Motors and aims to jointly develop models for China’s mid-sized car market.
  • Horizon Robotics is focusing on autonomous driving solutions, particularly highway Navigate on Autopilot (NoA), with plans to expand into urban environments by 2025.
  • The company is reorganizing resources and delegating its smart cockpit business to a subsidiary to concentrate on self-driving features.

3. Stack AV Launches Autonomous Trucking Business to Revolutionize the Transportation of Goods

• • Stack AV has announced the launch of its autonomous trucking business, aiming to use self-driving technology to improve efficiency and safety in the trucking industry and address supply chain challenges.
  • The company’s focus is on revolutionizing goods transportation by addressing long-standing industry issues such as driver shortages, vehicle uptime efficiency, safety concerns, high operating costs, and emissions.
  • Stack AV aims to create efficient and safe autonomous trucking solutions to enhance supply chains, improve business outcomes, deliver goods faster, and advance the trucking industry.
  • The company is confident in its proprietary technology and its partnership with SoftBank, which provides capital, resources, and AI expertise to support Stack AV’s growth and technological advancements.
  • Stack AV’s leadership team, including CEO Bryan Salesky, President Peter Rander, and CTO Brett Browning, boasts over seven decades of combined experience in autonomous systems, robotics, and AI.
  • The company is headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, has 150 employees across its headquarters and 15 states, and uses an innovative remote-work/co-working collaboration model.

4. Quanergy and PowerStack Partner to Offer Q-Track with Off-grid Smart Poles

• • Quanergy Solutions has formed a strategic partnership with PowerStack, a leader in off-grid smart power poles, to address security challenges in remote critical infrastructure environments, including utilities and data centers.
  • These remote locations often lack access to power and infrastructure, relying on costly and inaccurate legacy security solutions that generate false alarms.
  • Quanergy’s Q-Track integrates its long-range 3D LiDAR sensors with advanced perception software to provide hyper-accurate 3D intelligent awareness for improved security and reduced false alarms.
  • PowerStack’s modular solar poles offer a sustainable and cost-effective off-grid power solution for safety, security, and smart technologies, including lighting, cameras, wireless sensors, and communications networks.
  • The integration allows remote sites to deploy Quanergy’s Q-Track without the need for AC power supply or data infrastructure, improving security and reducing false alerts.
  • This partnership addresses the challenges of deploying security solutions in remote locations with limited access to power and infrastructure.

5. UK start-up Wayve unveils self-driving system that explains its actions

• • UK start-up Wayve has developed a self-driving car system called Lingo-1 that can explain its actions in plain English, addressing the transparency issue in AI decision-making.
  • Lingo-1 can answer questions and clarify why it made specific decisions, enhancing passengers’ understanding of the technology.
  • While the system demonstrated the ability to explain speed and surroundings, it faced challenges when asked about complex scenarios, indicating the need for further training.
  • Wayve’s approach to autonomous driving differs from others, as it learns to drive by processing videos of humans driving and learning autonomously.
  • The company’s technology aims to overcome challenges associated with rules-based systems and regulatory approval.
  • Wayve’s “end-to-end” self-driving system incorporates rules from the Highway Code into its training and uses recent advances in large language models to produce explanations in text.
  • While Wayve hasn’t provided a specific timeline for integrating Lingo-1 into its self-driving cars, the technology is seen as a step toward building trust and transparency in autonomous driving systems.