The Significance and Flexibility of The COO Role in The World of Autonomous Driving
Dr. Wei Luo, Chief Operating Officer of DeepMap recently explained the importance of her role within the realm of HD mapping for autonomous driving. DeepMap builds accurate, safe, and maintainable maps for autonomous vehicles, allowing them to seamlessly integrate into society.
Before working for DeepMap, Wei Luo spent nine years working at Google, focusing specifically on Google Maps, Google Earth, and other such AI-based mapping tools. She gained her Ph.D. in Remote Sensing and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) from UC Berkeley; she is well-versed in understanding how to electronically measure and map complex landscapes.
What does a COO do, and why are they so important?
Understanding what a COO does is not as simple understanding the role of more recognized positions such a CEO or CFO (chief financial officer). In her own words, Wei Luo explained that
“COOs can play different roles, and a COO can play different roles at different times in the same company as well. As the second hand in command, you have to be very flexible”.
Flexibility
The work they do is directly dependent on where the company’s progress is currently at, and what its priorities have shifted to. The COO of a startup is a complex position in large part because you must be well-versed in most areas of the business. Wei Luo started at DeepMap by doing recruitment, setting up phone calls, interviews, and other administrative functions, however nowadays she focuses on managing the engineering teams and overseeing product management.
Additionally, she expects that her role will “probably shift again” sometime in the future. These may all seem like they should be separate jobs, but this is exactly what makes being a COO so important. Every startup needs to recognize how to adapt to its growth and its ever-changing field, and having a COO who understands and appreciates this will ease the process tenfold.
Leadership
Wei Luo further explained that the COO is the “second hand in command” to the CEO, so strong leadership is still a necessary element. This means that while they must navigate the constant changes to their role, they must also give the other team members their undivided attention, and guide them on their current projects. They may be second in command but at times the line between the two is blurred in the midst of changes and adaptations, meaning that a tight relationship with the CEO is necessary.
Personalized Role
Additionally, the COO’s role is often crafted with the individual in mind, making it one of the more personal roles available at a startup. Wei Luo used the example of Facebook’s COO (Sheryl Sandberg) to illustrate this, noting that “Sheryl manages more of the business and the people operation functionality… because she has a stronger business background”, whereas Wei Luo herself pays more attention to the product development and engineering side of work.
HD mapping and autonomous driving
The aim of DeepMap is to build safe and precise electronics maps which allow for autonomous vehicles to accurately navigate the road. They are currently partnering with Ford, Honda, and SAIC Motor to bring self-driving cars to the masses and make them a commonplace element of any area. Mapping an area and then making it understandable on an AI level is a complex and intricate task, which is something Wei Luo clearly appreciates.
“We know HD mapping for self-driving is extremely hard, it’s harder than anybody can imagine actually. So we took a lot of time to design the right product from the beginning”.
This is because HD mapping is largely different from its SD counterparts. SD (standard-definition) maps are generally the maps you see on Google Maps, MapQuest, and Uber. While these are, in-and-of themselves, complex systems, their functionality is limited. They are usually only accurate by several meters.
HD maps, on the other hand, are accurate by a range of centimeters as this is necessary for ensuring that a machine such as a car knows what it needs to do. They both serve different functions too. SD maps do not need to be precise by the centimeter because they are designed for the human eye, and humans can account for tiny errors with ease. Whereas with HD maps, as Wei Luo explained they are
“ultimately maps made for self-driving cars to consume, and it’s absolutely not allowed that you have mistakes in your maps and therefore leading to mistakes in self-driving decisions”.
The margin of error is much slimmer. As HD mapping is focused on communicating knowledge to machines, rather than to humans, it must be much more accurate.
“Mapping a small area is already hard, mapping a big area is harder, and the ability to maintain this map and accurately reflect all the changes that you see on the road and do it very fast is very hard”.
HD mapping is an on-going process which needs constant attention and care to make sure that it improves with the times.
Wei Luo’s insight into the world of being a COO for an HD mapping startup reveals just how important it is to adapt. Both her role and the company she works for the need to be agile and proactive in the face on any type of change. This is especially true for startups but for larger organizations too.
Wei Luo discusses many more topics within the full interview, such as what obstacles DeepMap have recently faced, and how she has used her fluency in English and Chinese to her advantage. She also gives advice on how to get promoted at work. Watch the full interview for more details, and visit Robin.ly for more AI and entrepreneur focused content.
