A SELF-DRIVING startup is using artificial intelligence to teach cars how to drive — and one of the project’s leaders believes the technology will prove safer than human drivers.
Ben Foxall, head of the robot web team at Artificial Intelligence (AI) automotive startup Wayve, believes his technology has the potential to save lives.
Wayve is a self-driving startup based in London
“I think there’s a significant potential for [self-driving] tech to be safer than humans," he said.
Foxall added: “Tech can perceive a larger amount of data and doesn’t get tired,” Business Insider reports.
The Wayve engineer was drawn to driverless technology after experiencing a traumatic childhood event.
Foxall said: “I had a friend at school who died in a car accident.
“She was doing a classic maneuver and didn’t check her blind spots.
“It’s tragic that people can die in very preventable situations.”
Foxall’s robot team makes platforms where they can see what’s happening in Wayve cars.
These details include what’s occurring in the vehicle’s cameras and sensors, speed, maneuvers, indications, and braking.
Wayve vehicles adopt the AV2.0 approach to self-driving that’s rooted in deep end-to-end learning.
This end-to-end learning consists of reinforcement, taking examples from expert safety operators, virtual data generated in an in-house simulator, and real-world testing.
Reinforcement learning is when the driverless car experiences something and learns what to do next time instead of pre-programming.
Foxall gave a real-world example of Wayve’s increased safety: “Wayve’s headquarters is in King’s Cross, one of the busiest areas of central London, so it’s a really challenging environment to drive in.
“The first time I rode in one of Wayve’s autonomous cars driving around the area, I was incredibly impressed to see how our models handled it.
“Honestly, there are times you forget you’re in a vehicle powered by AI,” Business Insider reports.
When passengers enter a Wayve car, they’ll have access to an outward-facing user interface tablet.
The tablet will display fundamental trip details, like a passenger’s location.
Wayve employees stand by a fleet of the company’s self-driving automobiles
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