Photo: Toyota
Unsurprisingly, self-driving cars were a big subject at this year's CES in Las Vegas. They tend to do that everywhere they go lately, so an event dedicated to all things technological couldn't have made an exception.
Tesla, probably the most vocal automaker when it comes to autonomous tech, is famously absent from these "mainstream" conventions, but other companies stepped in. Audi, for instance, announced it would launch a Level 4 AI-controlled vehicle by 2020 with help from their partner (and Tesla's), Nvidia.
Toyota, on the other hand, played it cool. The Japanese brand showed the Concept-i, a futuristic vehicle whose main feature was its built-in assistant called Yui. While the car did have some autonomous features, the technology focused on how the AI could help the driver instead of taking over completely.
And that's the path Toyota thinks everyone should walk on for now. "None of us in the automobile or IT industries are close to achieving true Level 5 autonomy," said Gill Pratt, CEO of the Toyota Research Institute, quoted by Automotive News. Pratt thinks that, at this time, the safe and sane approach is to go for Level 2 autonomy, meaning the driver remains in control at all times, but the vehicle is able to predict potentially dangerous situations and, hopefully, help the human component prevent them.
Pratt reiterated what other companies - namely Volvo - have also said, which is that they plan to skip Level 3 altogether and go straight to Level 4. The reason behind this decision has been discussed on numerous occasions: Level 3 autonomy requires the driver to remain alert at all times and be ready to take over should the system decide it can't handle the situation, something the human mind is incapable of doing.
"It will take many years of machine learning and many more miles than anyone has logged of both simulated and real-world testing to achieve the perfection required," Mr. Pratt said of the industry's ambitions to reach Level 4 as quickly as possible. And perfection is what the self-driving tech needs if it wants to make a clean, trouble-free start.
Toyota, on the other hand, played it cool. The Japanese brand showed the Concept-i, a futuristic vehicle whose main feature was its built-in assistant called Yui. While the car did have some autonomous features, the technology focused on how the AI could help the driver instead of taking over completely.
And that's the path Toyota thinks everyone should walk on for now. "None of us in the automobile or IT industries are close to achieving true Level 5 autonomy," said Gill Pratt, CEO of the Toyota Research Institute, quoted by Automotive News. Pratt thinks that, at this time, the safe and sane approach is to go for Level 2 autonomy, meaning the driver remains in control at all times, but the vehicle is able to predict potentially dangerous situations and, hopefully, help the human component prevent them.
Pratt reiterated what other companies - namely Volvo - have also said, which is that they plan to skip Level 3 altogether and go straight to Level 4. The reason behind this decision has been discussed on numerous occasions: Level 3 autonomy requires the driver to remain alert at all times and be ready to take over should the system decide it can't handle the situation, something the human mind is incapable of doing.
"It will take many years of machine learning and many more miles than anyone has logged of both simulated and real-world testing to achieve the perfection required," Mr. Pratt said of the industry's ambitions to reach Level 4 as quickly as possible. And perfection is what the self-driving tech needs if it wants to make a clean, trouble-free start.
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