Today, vehicles are evolving to be more connected and autonomous. Innovators continually develop new ideas to make transportation more convenient, efficient and eco-friendly. And CES 2019 in Las Vegas is the place to see the latest and greatest. With over 290K net square feet of vehicle-tech exhibit space, CES 2019 is your opportunity to see the self-driving cars, concept cars, connected vehicles and… flying taxis!? In fact, you can even test drive the latest vehicle technology including parking assist, collision avoidance, emergency braking and more.
CES Self-Driving Cars
Remember when the concept of driverless vehicles seemed so futuristic and farfetched? These “imaginary” vehicles appeared in sci-fi films and on “The Jetsons.” Honestly, who would have thought that we’d be sharing the roads with autonomous vehicles today? Or that self-driving cars would be a technology category at CES 2019?
There are many opportunities at CES2019 to learn about self-driving cars. For example, Toyota will roll out its latest autonomous vehicle, TomTom will debut its end-to-end autonomous driving system, and Aptiv (APTV) will demonstrate its autonomous driving technology at CES. The schedule is packed with automotive exhibitors, conference sessions and live demos. In addition, attendees can catch a ride in one of Aptiv and Lyft’s fleet of autonomous ride-share vehicles. In addition, Veoneer, Inc., NVIDIA, Bell, Clarion and many more exhibitors at CES are focusing on self-driving cars.
CES Vehicle Technology
In addition, self-driving cars are not the only automotive headliner at CES2019. For example, you can experience the latest in smart mobility, concept cars, connected vehicles, in-car entertainment and more. Audi and Disney will hold a joint press conference to discuss the future of in-car entertainment. Automaker Byton (the name means Bytes on Wheels) returns to CES2019 to show off its very first production-ready cockpit featuring two massive infotainment displays. Automaker Kia will present their new and unusual vehicle, the SEED Car, which features a four-wheel electric cycle and is positioned as an innovative mobility solution for cities. Other featured exhibitors include Daimler AG, Audi of America Inc., Nissan Motor Co., Ltd., Ford Motor Company, and many more.
Autonomous Vehicle Insights and Inquiries
Beyond the cool factor of self-driving cars, there is also the issue of safety and reliability. Self-driving cars can experience mechanical issues, blown tires and, one of the biggest risk factors with any technology, user error. An article in Fortune Magazine states that human operators, not the self-driving technology, are the leading cause of accidents involving self-driving cars. Granted that, can a smart car or autonomous vehicle mitigate all of these risks and, when an accident occurs, who is at fault? Car and Driver predicts a prosperous future for litigators and asks, “Who’s to blame? Who gets sued in these scenarios? The tire company? The software maker? The drivers who touched ‘Agree’ on their startup screens?”
Of course, the safety factor is not to be taken lightly. After one of Uber’s self-driving cars struck a pedestrian while the emergency backup driver was watching a show on a mobile device, the ride-hailing company halted testing its autonomous vehicles. Now, after a “top-to-bottom safety review”, the company is close to putting its self-driving cars back on the road – in a drastically reduced version of earlier efforts. A multiple-year tracking study by AAA reports that “three-quarters (73 percent) of American drivers report they would be too afraid to ride in a fully self-driving vehicle,” and that “two-thirds (63 percent) of U.S. adults report they would actually feel less safe sharing the road with a self-driving vehicle while walking or riding a bicycle.”
Into the Unknown
Connected cars are going beyond the driveway and straight into homes. Amazon recently announced a partnership with Telenav, bringing Alexa into cars. Tim Baxter, President and CEO of Samsung Electronics North America, shared their vision of connecting cars and homes at CES this week.
Still, there are many unanswered questions about this rapidly-evolving vehicle technology. Can we trust self-driving cars? Is the self-driving car your new DD? Will taxis really fly? Bring your burning questions to CES2019 to get your answers straight from global vehicle technology leaders. Share this article and your CES experiences during the event using #CES2019.
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