January 30, 2018
Autonomous vehicle market has been traversing along a rather remarkable growth path in recent years, pertaining to rapid developments in automated vehicle technology. Most of the companies in autonomous vehicle market have lately been investing heavily in research & development activities and highly innovative technological advancements that would bring about a dynamic transformation in the adoption of automated mechanisms. Automakers and tech giants have been joining forces to harness each other’s expertise, while synonymously commencing promotional campaigning programs to encourage the masses to adopt newly developed ADAS systems. The introduction of driverless cars, for instance, has received massive prominence in recent times, given that it helps reduce road accidents and fatalities. In fact, due to the availability of such advanced technologies across several countries, the plausible occurrence of car accidents has witnessed a decline. Considering the significance of automated tech, regional governments have also been striving to do their bit toward autonomous vehicle market expansion by means of deploying favorable rules and regulations. The rising demand for driverless cars, in tandem with the growing popularity of automation across the automotive sector, are indeed likely to stimulate autonomous vehicle market share.
In a bid to further actualize the notion of driverless cars, renowned automakers across the globe have been making robust investments in autonomous vehicle market. For instance, a subsidiary of Alphabet, Waymo has recently designed sensors and software in order to detect obstacles while driving, such as pedestrians, cyclists, and other vehicles. In addition, ride-hailing service providers are also looking forward to penetrating autonomous vehicle market via strategic collaborations with driverless car manufacturing companies. For instance, the world’s leading ride hailing taxi technology company, Uber has signed an agreement with Volvo to buy 24,000 SUVs in which it plans to implement its autonomous driving technology, thereby contributing its bit toward autonomous vehicle industry expansion.
Infrastructure development related to automation seems to be one of the major concerns for the biggies in autonomous vehicle market. In this regard, German automakers such as BMW, Daimler, and Audi are continuously working to improve car-traffic connected infrastructure, as car-to-infrastructure communication is one of the most essential features that enables autonomous driving. Say for example, in 2017, Daimler, Audi, and BMW have conjointly invested USD 3.1 billion in Nokia for developing mapping service equipment which can be used in connected cars.
Considering that automated vehicles are likely to define the future of the automotive sector, regional governments and regulatory authorities have been striving to come up with a proper frame of reference encompassing specific norms related to self-driving mechanisms. The British government for instance, has invested a substantial amount to encourage the regional autonomous vehicle market players to develop self-driving cars and implement the same across the rural and urban areas. For the record, UK plans to emerge as a completely driverless economy by 2021, especially now that numerous companies such as Apple, Google, Volvo, Uber, Toyota, and Daimler have been undertaking trial runs of driverless cars across UK. As of now, the British government has already decided to invest GBP 50 million toward the development of driverless car technology. The increasing involvement of the government as well as tech giants in driverless infrastructure development is thus slated boost UK autonomous vehicle industry outlook.
Taking into account the future requirement of autonomous cars, emerging companies in autonomous vehicle market have been establishing partnerships with renowned automakers. For instance, recently in 2018, a start-up company founded by Tesla, Uber, and Google, Aurora has signed an agreement with leading automakers, Hyundai and Volkswagen to introduce autonomous vehicle technology in the market within 3 years. Through this deal, Aurora will share its AI and machine learning technology with these two biggies, which manufactures over 15 million vehicles annually. In addition, several other behemoths in automotive market are focusing on new innovation and research activities to further harness driverless technology. For instance, Ford recently applied for a patent for an autonomous police car in which the firm plans to implement AI technology that would help the vehicle detect infraction generated by other vehicles. These patented autonomous police cars can manually take the control of the vehicle by accessing its wireless connection. Increasing innovations regarding the functionality of driverless cars are thus likely to stimulate autonomous vehicle market size over the years ahead.
The growing digitalization along with emergence of artificial intelligence and IoT will have a positive impact on autonomous vehicle market trends. In this regard, many tech giants have been teaming up with carmakers. For instance, in 2018, leading computing technology developer, Nvidia collaborated with Uber and Volkswagen to expand its technology in driverless cars. Earlier, it also partnered with renowned electric car makers Tesla and Baidu. The ongoing development in computing technology and the earnest participation of these companies toward enhancing automation across myriad sectors are certain to boost autonomous vehicle market share over the years ahead.