CES 2017: NVIDIA, Audi team up to make AI-driven cars

With brands teaming up to build the most advanced self-driving cars, the partnership between NVIDIA and Audi emerges – and they have a driverless Q7 to demo its capabilities at the 2017 Consumer Electronics Show (CES).

Their gem is NVIDIA DRIVE PX, which is the first phase of the partnership. It’s an artificial intelligence (AI) platform that uses AI neural networks that detects the surroundings to find a safe path. The production car that uses this platform is expected to roll out by 2020.

In the CES, a self-driving Audi Q7 is in place for demonstration. Attendees are able to ride at the backseat of the vehicle and experience a driverless journey through a controlled course. The path has a variety of surfaces, which includes roads with and without lane markings.

NVIDIA founder and CEO Jen-Hsun Huang said that they pioneered in the use of deep learning AI to improve mobility.

Audi's adoption of our DRIVE computing platform for AI cars will accelerate the introduction of next-generation autonomous vehicles, moving us closer to a future of higher driving safety and new mobility services," he added.

The partnership between NVIDIA and Audi has sprung 7 years back, which paved way to Audi MMI navigation and Audi virtual cockpit – technologies present across Audi’s range of vehicles. With that, in the coming months we’ll hear news about a new A8, a level 3 automated car with Traffic Jam Pilot system. This is powered by zFAS that integrates NVIDIA hardware and software.

In line with the NVIDIA AI platform, the tech company also introduces Co-pilot. As reported by Engadget, this new driver-assist technology is true to its name, working as a co-pilot by detecting your mood and movements to check if you’ve been distracted while driving. If you can stand backseat drivers, this one’s for you.