TUM Autonomous Motorsport Tops CES 2024 Autonomous Challenge

The Indy Autonomous Challenge (IAC) announced that TUM Autonomous Motorsport from the Technical University of Munich won this year’s Autonomous Challenge @ CES, part of CES 2024. The team’s outstanding performance and cutting-edge autonomous driving technology secured them the first spot in a thrilling race, surpassing Cavalier Autonomous Racing from the University of Virginia, who came in second.

TUM Autonomous Motorsport’s triumph came as their racecar reached speeds of over 150 mph despite the cold weather affecting the tires and windy conditions. In an unprecedented moment during the 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 as 1.5 meters from each other. This marked a first for high-speed autonomous racing.

The victory of the TUM team highlighted remarkable advancements in autonomous technologies and the commitment of the next generation of innovators and thinkers. Following TUM’s win, as the sun set over Las Vegas, three IAC racecars achieved a world’s first by running on the track simultaneously. 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 started 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, showcasing the capability of autonomous vehicle technology to operate without visible light.

The CES 2024 attendees cheered when the TII Unimore racecar overtook the AI Tech Racing racecar, running in pitch black and outlined only in LED lights to make the autonomous racecars visible to the crowd.

The IAC AV-24, recognized as the most technologically advanced and fastest autonomous racecar ever assembled, showcased an unparalleled set of equipment. Fitted with cutting-edge hardware and driven by AI driver algorithms, the AV-24 marks a significant advancement in high-speed autonomous mobility.

Mitchell expressed, “They are honored to be back at CES 2024, hosting the Autonomous Challenge for the third time. Over the years, they 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, they continue to push the boundaries of high-speed autonomy.”

Developed in collaboration with industry leaders like Bridgestone, Cisco, Continental, dSPACE, Luminar, Marelli, NI, VectorNav, and others, the IAC AV-24 will remain 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 various capacities, either competing with legacy IAC AV-21 racecars or demonstrating the capabilities of the groundbreaking IAC AV-24 racecar.

Six teams from nine universities across 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)