For decades, Formula 1 has been the pinnacle for technical innovation in motorsport. A lot of concepts first developed there nhave made their way to road cars. From active suspension through traction control to the Kinetic Energy Recovery System (or KERS). However, there is a new innovation coming from the world of road cars that threatens to radically change Formula 1 and motorsport as whole. I am talking, of course, about self-driving cars. It is becoming increasingly clear that self-driving cars are going to be part of everyday life in the near future, but perhaps they will first take over car racing.
The world’s first racing championship featuring self-driving cars was announced at the end of 2015. It is called Roborace and is backed by Nvidia, which will provide the processing power behind each car with its Drive PX2 super computer capable of 24 trillion AI operations per second. The racing series has already been approved by FIA (the international government body for motorsport). It will consist of 10 teams each racing 2 full-sized driver-less electric cars with top speed of 320 km/h. Each car’s specification will be identical, but every team will be able to develop their own AI algorithms and software. The Roborace events will take place alongside the increasingly popular FIA Formula E Championship, which uses only electric-powered vehicles.
The Roborace racing car was and was unveiled after 1 year of development in February 2017 during the World Mobile Congress in Barcelona. However, it remains unclear when the first official race will take place as the AI software is still far from perfect. This was demonstrated during a recent test run in Buenos Aires between two of Roborace’s development cars. One of the vehicles successfully navigated the circuit at speeds as high as 186 km/h and even managed to avoid a dog which had ran onto the track. While the other car crashed out due to misjudging a corner while at high speed.
Nevertheless, Roborace will eventually become a reality. The bigger question is though will motorsport fans even be interested in a driver-less racing championship? There has already been a lot of scepticism in the Formula 1 circles. For most fans, myself included, the drivers are what keeps them interested in motorsports. Whether it’s admiring their skills, being charmed by their personality, or annoyed at their errors, the human element is what brings uncertainty to otherwise technology driven sport. The founders of Roborace claim that they will be able to make the AI drivers the stars by communicating to the audience in real-time their decision-making. But once the AI software is perfected, will there be any uncertainty or variability in driver-less races? And even if there is, will it bring the same excitement without the human element. This is the reason, I think Roborace can never replace Formula 1 as the most popular motorsport. What about you? Do you think Roborace can succeed, even after the initial novelty wears out?
Check out this video if you want to know more about Roborace!
References:
Biesbrouck, T. (2017, July 18). Roborace explained: Where artificial intelligence meets racing. Retrieved from Motorsport: https://www.motorsport.com/roborace/news/roborace-explained-when-artificial-intelligence-meets-racing-932565/
Jager, C. (2016, April 6). Self-Driving F1 Racecar Robots Are Coming In 2016. Retrieved from Gizmodo AU: https://www.gizmodo.com.au/2016/04/self-driving-f1-racing-cars-are-a-thing-and-its-coming-in-2016/
Simon-Lewis, A. (2017, February 27). Roborace unveils Robocar, the world’s first AI-powered, self-driving electric racer. Retrieved from Wired: http://www.wired.co.uk/article/robocar-roborace-ai-driverless-car
