Details of Collaboration Model Including Scalable Architecture Disclosed

Intel, BMW, and Mobileye announced that approximately 40 autonomous vehicles will appear on actual roads by the second half of 2017, thereby revealing the achievements the three companies have accomplished toward fully autonomous driving.

During a panel discussion held at a joint press conference at CES, the three companies explained in detail the cutting-edge technologies from Intel and Mobileye incorporated in the BMW 7 Series through a global pilot period starting in the United States and Europe.

▲Intel, BMW, and Mobileye Executives

The three companies—Intel, BMW, and Mobileye—which disclosed their partnership in July of last year, have developed a scalable architecture that other automotive developers and manufacturers can apply to design cutting-edge designs and create differentiated brands. They provide a wide range of differentiated consumer experiences from individual key integrated modules to complete end-to-end solutions.

Klaus Fröhlich, a member of the management board at BMW AG's Development Division, stated: "The vehicles we develop this year will be tested globally in real traffic conditions. This will be an important stepping stone toward the launch of BMW iNEXT, BMW Group's first fully autonomous vehicle in 2021."

Intel CEO Brian Krzanich said: "Connectivity from vehicles to cloud systems enables automobiles to perform consistent and predictable behavior and to enjoy the highest level of safety. This is why this partnership opens new horizons. We have established a dedicated team with clear, shared goals and a culture of innovation, agility, and responsibility."

Amnon Shashua, Mobileye co-founder, chairman, and CTO, stated: "As part of the collaboration, BMW Group is responsible for drive control and vehicle dynamics. Additionally, through its suppliers, BMW will expand this platform, thereby installing high-performance simulation engines and performing component integration, manufacturing, and prototyping across the entire vehicle."

Intel Provides Innovative High-Performance Computing Elements from Vehicles to Data Centers

Through the partnership, Intel provides innovative high-performance computing elements from vehicles to data centers. The newly launched Intel GO™ solution for autonomous driving includes world-class processors and FPGA technology, meeting the stringent thermal and safety requirements of the automotive industry while balancing vehicle power with the most efficient power consumption.

▲Intel, BMW, and Mobileye Autonomous Vehicle Design.

Within the vehicle, the Intel GO solution serves as a scalable development and computing platform, providing key functions such as sensor fusion, driving policy, environmental modeling, path planning, and decision-making. In the data center, Intel GO provides artificial intelligence capabilities based on powerful machine learning and deep learning simulation infrastructure required by the autonomous driving industry on high-performance Intel Xeon processors, Intel Arria 10 FPGA, Intel solid-state drives, and the Intel Nervana™ platform.

The BMW iNEXT Model to be Introduced in 2021 Will Serve as the Foundation of BMW Group's Autonomous Driving Strategy

Meanwhile, Mobileye supported the proprietary EyeQ 5 high-performance computer vision processor that provides automotive-grade functional safety and low-power performance. The EyeQ5 processes and interprets data input from 360-degree surround-view vision sensors while supporting localization. The EyeQ®5, together with Intel CPU and FPGA technology, forms a central computing platform that integrates each autonomous vehicle.

In collaboration with BMW Group, Mobileye develops a sensor fusion solution and constructs a complete environmental model around the vehicle based on information obtained through vision, radar, and LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) sensors. Mobileye's reinforced learning algorithm empowers the vehicle system with artificial intelligence, enabling it to establish driving policies tailored to complex driving situations.

To further accelerate the development of the autonomous vehicle platform, BMW and Mobileye plan to release hardware samples and software updates. The BMW iNEXT model to be introduced in 2021 will serve as the foundation of BMW Group's autonomous driving strategy, and BMW Group plans to showcase its highly automated model lineup following this model.