TUM Autonomous Motorsports Wins Third Annual Autonomous Challenge @ CES

The Indy Autonomous Challenge (IAC), the global innovator in high-speed autonomy, today announced that TUM Autonomous Motorsport from the Technical University of Munich won this year’s Autonomous Challenge @ CES, as part of CES®2024. The team's exceptional performance and cutting-edge autonomous driving technology propelled it to first place in a thrilling race that showcased the future of automotive innovation, as they bested Cavalier Autonomous Racing, out of the University of Virginia, who took second place in the competition.

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As the sun set over Las Vegas, three IAC racecars achieved a world’s first with all three fully autonomous racecars running on the track at the same time. The PoliMOVE-MSU, AI Tech Racing, and TII Unimore teams took to the track with the newly unveiled Next Gen Autonomous Vehicle Platform, the IAC AV-24 for a night demo operating in total darkness, outlined in LED lights only to illuminate the autonomous racecars for the crowd to see. (Photo: Business Wire)

The TUM Autonomous Motorsport team's triumph was earned with its racecar reaching maximum speeds of more than 150 mph despite cold weather affecting the tires and overall windy conditions. In a never seen before moment during the thrilling semifinal matchup, the TUM and KAIST teams raced side by side, two wide and wheel-to-wheel through turns one and two, getting as close 1.5 meters from each other. A first for high-speed autonomous racing.

The TUM victory is a testament to the remarkable advancements in autonomous technologies and the dedication of the next generation of innovators and thinkers. After TUM’s victory, as the sun set over Las Vegas, three IAC racecars achieved a world’s first with all three fully autonomous racecars running on the track at the same time. Three IAC University teams, PoliMOVE-MSU, AI Tech Racing, and TII Unimore, took to the track with the newly unveiled Next Gen Autonomous Vehicle Platform, the IAC AV-24. The three-racecar demo began under the track lights and then in another world’s first, the lights were turned off and the IAC AV-24 racecars operated in total darkness demonstrating the ability of autonomous vehicle technology to operate without any visible light.

The crowd of CES 2024 attendees went wild when the TII Unimore racecar passed the AI Tech Racing racecar, running in pitch black, outlined in only LED lights to illuminate the autonomous racecars for the crowd to see.

“Congratulations to TUM Autonomous Motorsport on its Autonomous Challenge @ CES victory," said Paul Mitchell, president, IAC. "This achievement, along with the performances of all participating teams, especially the world’s first night runs with three IAC AV-24 racecars, proves that autonomous driving is no longer a distant dream but a reality shaping our future."

The IAC AV-24, the most technologically advanced and fastest autonomous racecar ever assembled, showcased an unprecedented package of equipment. Equipped with cutting edge hardware and piloted by AI driver algorithms, the AV-24 represents a significant leap forward in high-speed autonomous mobility.

"We are honored to be back at CES 2024, hosting the Autonomous Challenge for a third time," continued Mitchell. "Over the years, we have witnessed historic moments, from the first-ever head-to-head autonomous racecar competition in 2022, to setting a new autonomous world speed record in 2023. Now, with the operation of three IAC AV-24s in total darkness, we continue to push the boundaries of high-speed autonomy."

The IAC AV-24, developed in collaboration with top industry partners Bridgestone, Cisco, Continental, dSPACE, Luminar, Marelli, NI, VectorNav and others will continue to be on display in IAC’s West Hall booth, #5901 through Friday, January 12 at CES 2024.

Nine teams from 18 universities spanning seven countries participated in the event in different capacities, whether it was competing with legacy IAC AV-21 racecars or demonstrating the capabilities of the groundbreaking IAC AV-24 racecar.

Six teams from nine universities spanning three countries competed using the IAC AV-21 racecar in the Indy Autonomous Challenge @ CES 2024 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, including:

• Autonomous Tiger Racing (ATR) - Auburn University
• Black & Gold Autonomous Racing - Purdue University
• Cavalier Autonomous Racing (CAR) - University of Virginia
• KAIST - Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (South Korea)
• MIT-PITT-RW - Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Massachusetts), University of Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania), Rochester Institute of Technology (New York), and University of Waterloo (Canada)
• TUM Autonomous Motorsport - Technische Universität München (Germany)

Three teams from nine universities spanning four countries demonstrated the IAC AV-24 racecar in the Indy Autonomous Challenge @ CES 2024 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, including:

• AI Racing Tech - University of California, Berkeley (California), University of Hawai'i (Hawai’i), with University of California, San Diego (California), Carnegie Mellon University (Pennsylvania)
• PoliMOVE-MSU - Politecnico di Milano (Italy), University of Alabama (Alabama), Michigan State University (Michigan)
• TII EuroRacing - University of Modena and Reggio Emilia (Italy), Technology Innovation Institute (United Arab Emirates)

For more information about the Indy Autonomous Challenge and the IAC AV-24, please visit www.IndyAutonomousChallenge.com.

Note to editors: B roll of the Autonomous Challenge @ CES can be found here. High-resolution images and additional information about the Indy Autonomous Challenge are available on the IAC Media Page. Please reach out to [email protected] with any questions.

About the IAC: The Indy Autonomous Challenge (IAC) is a non-profit corporation based in Indianapolis, Indiana (USA) which organizes racing competitions among university affiliated teams representing 18 universities from around the world. Teams program AI drivers to pilot fully autonomous IAC racecars and compete in a series of history-making events at iconic tracks. Based in Indiana, the IAC is working to establish a hub for performance automation in the state and is harnessing the power of innovative competitions to attract the best and the brightest minds from around the globe to further state-of-the-art technology in safety and performance of automated vehicles. The IAC started as a $1 million prize competition with 31 university teams signing up to compete more than three years ago, representing top engineering and technology programs from 15 U.S. states and 11 countries. Follow the IAC @IndyAChallenge on LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, & YouTube.

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