(VitalNews.org) – The UK self-driving startup Wayve has just gained over one billion dollars of investment to develop the next generation of artificial intelligence-powered vehicles. Japan’s Softbank led the round of funding, and it is also backed by California chipmaker Nvidia and Microsoft.
Wayve will use these funds to develop and launch its first AI technology for self-driving cars in the United Kingdom. The AI system will enable these vehicles to learn from the real-world environment, including anticipating unexpected actions by car drivers or pedestrians.
“This investment will help us launch our embodied AI products and expand our operations globally,” says co-founder and chief executive of Wayve, Alex Kendall. He continued, “It sends a crucial signal to the market of the strength of the UK’s AI ecosystem, and we look forward to watching more AI companies here thrive and scale.”
Kentaro Matsui is an example of Wayve and SoftBank’s alliance since he is a managing partner at SoftBank Investment Advisers who now serves on Wayve’s board.
He stated, “We have a vision of a peaceful world, free from traffic accidents. Once we learned that we shared a common vision, our team members and Masa were excited and felt we needed to help. We are very proud that we are taking part in this effort.”
Wayve’s technology is currently integrated into electric vehicles such as Jaguar I-Pace and the Ford Mustang MachE. They’ve carried out autonomous car trials in the UK and the transport secretary, Britain’s roads within two years.
Carmakers have been investing in autonomous cars for a while now and this particular autonomous vehicle bill is going to become a law in the next few weeks. It will unblock a “transport revolution” regarding the safe deployment of self-driving cars.
The deal is said to bring out the UK as an AI superpower and to prove its stance in the technology realm in comparison to other countries.
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