Collaboration In The Autonomous Vehicle Sector

Self-driving vehicles are not yet legal in the UK, although public trials – such as the autonomous shuttle service on Harwell's Science and Innovation Campus here in Oxfordshire – have been taking place for a number of years. However, the government has recently confirmed planned changes to The Highway Code, which it hopes will accompany a first wave of vehicles with limited, lane-keeping autonomy expected to be on UK motorways by the end of 2022.

Producing autonomous vehicles that are suitable for large scale, real-world use is a major challenge for automotive companies as they need to master a wide range of new technologies, not only in terms of the hardware that must be fitted to the vehicles (such as sensors, cameras and communications devices), but also the software (namely, artificial intelligence) required for any level of autonomy. Although tech companies wanting to enter the automotive market may be better placed to develop some of these technologies, they