A Tesla-Beating Self-Driving Leader Just Made A Catastrophic Mistake
Or have they?…
You have most likely never heard of Mobileye. However, they pioneered self-driving technology years before the Tesla Model S came out. You have never heard of them because they sell their technology to manufacturers like BMW, Audi, Volkswagen, Nissan, Ford, Honda, General Motors and more; as such, over 170 million vehicles worldwide use Mobileye automated systems. Several already operating robotaxi services run solely on Mobileye sensors, chips and AI. Meanwhile, Tesla has only sold 5.8 million cars in total and has no robotaxis. This gives Mobileye a vast leg-up over Musk. In fact, their EyeQ6 and EyeQ7 systems are set to embarrass their US counterpart, as they are predicted to be one of the first 100% fully automated self-driving systems on the planet. But they may have just made a catastrophic mistake that puts this promising future out of reach.
What’s this decision? Well, Mobileye has decided to disband its LiDAR research team.
LiDAR has been a crucial technology for Mobileye. It is one of their primary sensors, giving them detailed, accurate 3D maps of the world around their cars. Mobileye’s pioneering work on LiDAR and integrating it within these AI self-driving systems is what made them a world leader in the field. So, why are they abandoning it?
