Aurora, a technology startup that counts retail and tech giant Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) as an investor, is currently working to release a system of remote monitors that would help steer autonomous cars much like air-traffic controllers. Cofounded by former Google (NASDAQ: GOOGL) Self-Driving Car chief Chris Urmson, ex-Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) Autopilot leader Sterling Anderson, and a key member of Uber's (NYSE: UBER) Advanced Technology Center Drew Bagnell, Aurora is investing in a system its named "teleassist", which is a series of sensors, software and vision operations that will allow trained technicians at remote facilities to access a vehicle's sensors when needed and offer suggestions and guidance for the self-driving car.
Teleoperation, which is similar to teleassist's system, has been used to steer space probes and drones, but has yet to be fully adapted into robotic cars. The only company that has come close is Waymo, the commercial self-driving company set up by Google, who uses human monitors at its facilities to assist its robotic ride service minivans, but operators do not take control of the vehicles. Other companies that are working in the scene include Phantom Auto and autonomous truck startup Starsky Robotics; both companies are testing remote control systems for delivery and consumer vehicles.
Teleassist is also not a control system, but more of a guide for robotic vehicles as the car comes into situations that it cannot handle on its own. Rather than allowing direct control of vehicles, Aurora is building an application programming interface (API) that can pass information between specialists and its self-driving software system tested to handle a range of road and safety conditions, thus building a smarter program.
Cofounder and chief product officer Sterling Anderson stated that: "Our system will alert remote teleassist personnel when the need arises, either because a rider or another user of the vehicle in a logistics network has requested it or because the vehicle has called for help." The system will pull vehicles using the operating system to the side of the road when making advice calls for the control center to work out the problem. The advice provided by remote assistance personnel will led to the vehicle's decision moving forward towards a solution.
Aurora as a company has raised $700 million since emerging into the public eye in January 2018. Back in February, Amazon invested into the company's Series B, which has raised more than $530 million for continued development into the technology. Aurora has begun testing autonomous delivery vans and trucks, in addition to passenger vehicles, though the company has not disclosed the details of its relationship with Amazon. Aurora has also worked with Volkswagon (OTC: VWAGY) and Hyundai (OTC: HYMTF) in the past.
"[Aurora's] approach to self-driving is safely, quickly, broadly. And if we want to get in market and make a difference sooner, we can do that safely if we introduce a system like this. Chances are our system will behave just fine in certain situations, but until and unless we've proven that it can do so safely with a strong statistical argument, we're going to take the conservative path," Anderson added.
Self-driving cars are not ready for large-scale commercial use, but as companies like Aurora continue to fine tune their safety technology the market will inevitably welcome autonomous vehicles with open arms.