NEW DELHI: Tesla’s Autopilot, a suite of self-driving features, has become a major driver for the US electric car maker, now the world’s second-largest electric car maker. In addition to this, Autopilot allows a Tesla to autonomously drive from a highway entry point to an exit point. Tech startup Minus Zero hopes to offer the same functionality in production vehicles within the next 2.5 to 3 years.

“It’s like a highway self-driving system. You can do anything on the highway from start to finish, but given the regulations we have in the country right now, the driver needs to be there,” said Negative Zero co-founder and chief operating officer officer Gursimran Kalra told ETAuto. The claimed “best part” of the system is that it also works in Indian driving environments with potholes or no lane markings. The system will allow hands-free driving on highways, but the driver will have to take control of the vehicle in situations such as left/right turns at intersections.

The indigenous technology development uses only cameras and advanced computing and is done by a team of 20 engineers in Bengaluru. The startup plans to double the size of its team in the next four months. Minus Zero’s nature-inspired AI technology uses eight to twelve cameras, depending on vehicle size, to enable autonomous driving.

Cooperation with original equipment manufacturers

As the ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance Systems) trend gains traction, OEMs are increasingly adopting it to strengthen their product/brand proposition. In the mass-produced passenger car market, Mahindra and MG hold the leading position, but the trend is also entering the commercial vehicle segment. Industry giants Tata Motors and Ashok Leyland are among the first truck manufacturers in India to embrace this technological trend,

Tata Motors announced ADAS-equipped trucks for its trucks in 2022, the same year Ashok Leyland signed a memorandum of understanding with UK-based AI self-driving technology provider Aidrivers to develop self-driving trucks primarily for terminal operations.

It is understood that the Minus Zero-Ashok Leland “strategic alliance” has a wider range of possibilities. The partners said in a joint press statement, “This long-term partnership aims to revolutionize the commercial freight industry through large-scale deployment of autonomous driving solutions.” It is reported that the first pre-production vehicle from this cooperation can be Ready in 12-18 months.

Similar to the products AIdrivers is working on, the focus of the latest partnership in the Indian automotive industry will be on developing customized self-driving truck solutions for ports, factory operations and corporate campuses, with the future likely to see partners deploying self-driving technology from hub to hub. . – Hub applications and long-haul freight, of course affected by the evolving regulatory framework around autonomous driving

Markets for rapidly evolving technologies

“In terms of technology and cost, there is a market for scalable and efficient autonomous driving technology solutions,” Kalra said. According to a CRISIL report, the Indian ADAS solutions market was worth $169 million in FY2023. It is expected to reach $1 billion by fiscal 2028.

Minus Zero’s self-driving technology stack claims to provide full self-driving capabilities to any vehicle in a “campus-like environment,” while self-driving capabilities on public roads will be “L2 and/L3.” In L2 or L2+ autonomous vehicles, these features provide advanced assistance functions (e.g., lane keeping assist, automatic emergency braking), while in L3 vehicles, there is a certain degree of autonomy (e.g., hands-free driving in certain scenarios) , but the driver must be alert enough to control the vehicle if necessary.

Watch also: Self-driving cars powered by nature-inspired AI technology

Technical work in progress

Thanks to the rapid development of artificial intelligence technology around the world, autonomous driving technology has made significant progress. Negative Zero is strengthening its capabilities by hiring advanced technology talent and is also working to make its technology proposition more robust. “We are also still in the maturity stage so far and we are working on some key edge cases,” Kalra said.

Since Negative Zero’s technical solution is camera-based only, it may have some limitations in some driving conditions, such as moderate to heavy rain or dark areas. Kalra expects to successfully address the challenge of autonomous driving in the dark within the next six to seven months. Infrared camera technology can be used to achieve this. Currently, Minus Zero’s technology suite uses automotive-grade Full HD cameras with GMSL (Gigabit Multimedia Serial Link) interfaces

To expand its technical capabilities, Minus Zero also raised $1.7 million in May 2022 and is recruiting “real senior experts” in artificial intelligence, vision technology, and more. And, the team is also building foundational artificial intelligence into the solution to help better inform decision-making.

As demand for advanced technologies continues to grow and collaboration is increasingly the name of the game, technology providers can look to a brighter future. For negative zero, there may be one or more collaborations in progress.