BMW plans fully autonomous car for 2021

BMW has joined forces with tech firms, Intel and Mobileye to introduce its first fully self-driving car in 2021. To be launched under the carmaker’s i sub-brand, the i Next will feature technologies and systems developed in conjunction with the two companies and will be the focus of BMW’s autonomous car operations.

BMW breaks down the progress of autonomous vehicles into three stages: ‘eyes off’, ‘mind off’ and, the ultimate goal, ‘driver off’. According to Amnon Shashua, CTO of Mobileye, the i Next will give both, level three (eyes off) and level five (driver off) autonomy. However, with BMW chairman Harald Krüger stating “safety is always the priority”, it indicates that the final level of autonomy is not yet set. He also admitted that the technology is yet to make the progress required to put such a car into practice, but the partnership has been set up to speed this along.

The overriding theme at the press conference announcing the partnership was that of safety. When the Tesla Autopilot crash was mentioned, Krüger used it as an example of why the technologies are not currently ready for real-world use.

The platform being developed by the three companies will be available to other car manufacturers that wish to build a car with similar values. Krüger also confirmed that any autonomous BMW car would continue to exhibit the same values and level of entertainment as today’s BMWs.

Additionally, BMW has said that it is also working on urban transport solutions, including autonomous ride-sharing strategies.