Mercedes-Benz, NVIDIA Partner to Build Advanced, Software-Defined Vehicles

[btarunr]

Mercedes-Benz, one of the largest manufacturers of premium passenger cars, and NVIDIA, the global leader in accelerated computing, plan to enter into a cooperation to create a revolutionary in-vehicle computing system and AI computing infrastructure. Starting in 2024, this will be rolled out across the fleet of next-generation Mercedes-Benz vehicles, enabling them with upgradable automated driving functions. Working together, the companies plan to develop the most sophisticated and advanced computing architecture ever deployed in an automobile.

The new software-defined architecture will be built on the NVIDIA DRIVE platform and will be standard in Mercedes-Benz's next-generation fleet, enabling state-of-the-art automated driving functionalities. A primary feature will be the ability to automate driving of regular routes from address to address. In addition, there will be numerous future safety and convenience applications. Customers will be able to purchase and add capabilities, software applications and subscription services through over-the-air software updates during the life of the car.



Jensen Huang, founder and CEO of NVIDIA, said: "We are excited to work with Mercedes-Benz. It's the perfect partner for us given its long record of innovation and our strong technical relationship. It's clear from our extensive discussions with Ola and his team that we share a common vision of the automobile of the future. Together, we're going to revolutionize the car ownership experience, making the vehicle software programmable and continuously upgradeable via over-the-air updates. Every future Mercedes-Benz with the NVIDIA DRIVE system will come with a team of expert AI and software engineers continuously developing, refining and enhancing the car over its lifetime."

Ola Källenius, Chairman of the Board of Management of Daimler AG and Head of Mercedes-Benz AG, said: "We are delighted to be able to extend our cooperation with NVIDIA. Jensen and I know one another well and we have spent a great deal of time talking about the goals and potential of next-generation vehicle computing architecture. This new platform will become an efficient, centralized and software-defined system in our future Mercedes-Benz vehicles. NVIDIA's AI computing architecture will help us streamline our journey towards autonomous driving. These new capabilities and upgrades will be downloaded from the cloud, improving safety, increasing value and extending the joy of ownership for all Mercedes-Benz customers."

A New Computing Architecture
Automated driving functions in future Mercedes-Benz cars will be powered by the next-generation NVIDIA DRIVE platform. The computer system-on-a-chip, called NVIDIA Orin, is based on the recently announced NVIDIA Ampere supercomputing architecture. The NVIDIA DRIVE platform includes a full system software stack designed for automated driving AI applications. NVIDIA and Mercedes-Benz will jointly develop the AI and automated vehicle applications that include SAE level 2 and 3, as well as automated parking functions (up to level 4).

The new system's state-of-the-art capabilities will be harnessed with a total focus on safety. As the technology and regulatory framework develop, it will be possible for every car to be updated over the air to enable new automated driving functions. Convenience as well as other safety features will also be available.

To develop the new models, both companies will be utilizing NVIDIA DRIVE Infrastructure solutions to enable data-driven development and deep neural network development to handle the requirements of the regions and operational domains where the cars will be available.

View at TechPowerUp Main Site

 

[TheLostSwede]

Sounds very unsafe to drive...
CaaS?
Forget to pay your monthly subscription and they switch it off on the way home from work...

 

[Fluffmeister]

Nice design win for Nvidia.

All else is tears in the rain.

 

[FreedomEclipse]

The question is... Will i be able to stream games to the dashboard or infotainment screen via the power of Geforce Experience?

I want a wireless option other than having to carry a gaming console inside my car and plugging into a HDMi port.

 

[TheLostSwede]

The question is... Will i be able to stream games to the dashboard or infotainment screen via the power of Geforce Experience?

I want a wireless option other than having to carry a gaming console inside my car and plugging into a HDMi port.

I didn't get an HDMI port in my Honda HR-V
Nor was I aware the front seats could fold back like that...
Although the infotainment screen is really rubbish in terms of quality, so not something I'd want to play games on (these apparently vary a lot depending on the country you buy the car in).
Also, the USB port barely delivers 500mA, so I can't even charge my phone using it...
Otherwise I quite like the car.

 

[Flanker]

Will the car come with a leather jacket?

 

[Caring1]

Will the car come with a leather jacket?

Well if they are giving you the chips, why not throw in a fish.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leatherjacket_fish

"Perpetually upgradeable"
This must be the world's first "future proof" computer.

 

[xkm1948]

AI assisted driving will solve quite a lot of traffic jam related problems. Take a look at this and educated yourself. AI system allows individual drivers to better coordinate on the road. Traditional “free for all” driving will cause congestion quite easily due to our limited visual perception of traffic condition ahead of us

 

[SRB151]

Great. Love the line about "subscription" services....now we'll get to pay monthly for the cruise control and radio. Customize the "apps" for a fee through the Mercedes app store. Gotta love progress.

 

[Recon-UK]

Great. Love the line about "subscription" services....now we'll get to pay monthly for the cruise control and radio. Customize the "apps" for a fee through the Mercedes app store. Gotta love progress.

Using the headlights is DLC.

 

[Gmr_Chick]

Using the headlights is DLC.

Nah, using the headlights is free, it's the high beams that would be DLC lol

 

[cucker tarlson]

save your crash with shadowplay

 

[remixedcat]

Your car updates in the middle of driving and you crash...

Or someone at merc/nvidia goes political and makes your car crash into the opposing faction's protestors, and then you get blamed for it and jailed.... hmmmmm... notcool.avi

 

[cucker tarlson]

Or someone at merc/nvidia goes political and makes your car crash into the opposing faction's protestors

btw I just lol'd at that "slience the gpus"

 

[Arcdar]

really…..

the idea is actually nice and two Major Players in the Industry join Forces.... but what I hear is "omg.... it'll cost THAT much" "Mercedes and Nvidia are Evil!!!"

and stuff like "they'll turn off your car while driving" / "update while you drive" / "will take Control of your car" …. yeah.


Some Facts:
- Software Options cost Money no matter which brand you Chose and in 90% of the "connected cars" it's subscription based (check BMW iDrive Options where you Need an account on a BMW site and can manage your subscriptions INCLUDING the map pack for your Navigation System and many other Things /// RR is the same, as it's the same platform // Jag has a subscription based Software database in all online connected Services // Audi has the same // could go on....)
- most of what is talked About is out there (tesla) or in development (Audi and some other "we'll be the next tesla" Brands from China, India and US) and no one is afraid of it there (that tesla would steer you into Audi cars to make a Point)
- most companies do it "on their own" and buy stuff from 3rd parties (Harmann and Alpine for instance are massive Headunit Producers for car Entertainment Systems) who have their own Agenda. Getting a partnership with someone who's specialized on doing their stuff and working togehter on a specific product for one brand is Nothing new in that way and just Shows that they are commited to create something serious.



So please, take your tinfoil hats off and think About the Arguments you're unpacking to bash a Topic before Posting. Yes, not everything is great and some of the info Needs more Details and depending on the final implementation might be ripe for complains About it but we're not even close to that. So please don't throw out some generic phrases just because you THINK a product MIGHT be a way you MIGHT NOT LIKE and bash a Company/idea before it's even on the market (or in a final prototype Phase) with Arguments that speak against nearly every brand in that sector while you use it to only Focus on one Player .

Thanks!

 

[cucker tarlson]

that's just banter.no one is serious.I'm happy for both.

 

[Vayra86]

Nice design win for Nvidia.

All else is tears in the rain.

Seeing is believing. So far VW is still fixing their software I believe And I don't see those Drive PXes everywhere, do you?

Volkswagen ID.3 Software Problem: 'It’s No Longer A Laughing Matter'

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insideevs.com

I think Tesla's headstart should not be underestimated, be it in software driven cars or autonomous drive. They have them on the road and actually being updated, they are also actively marketing their software upgrades already. Want ludicrous or more battery life? Pay up, thx.

Note that this is one of those rare SaaS solutions where you can't have 'an oopsie' in your release. What do you mean priority 1 incident? People just died because you forgot a line of code. The quality level/requirement is insane.

btw I just lol'd at that "slience the gpus"

They're silent when they die prematurely, though

 

[cucker tarlson]

inb4 nvidia drive-ready drivers for your cars.optimized parking manuverability.fixed black windshield issue.includes an easy crah reporting tool.

 

[Caring1]

AI assisted driving will solve quite a lot of traffic jam related problems. AI system allows CARS to better coordinate on the road. Traditional “free for all” driving will cause congestion quite easily due to STUPID DRIVERS.

Fixed it for you. You're welcome.

 

[Fluffmeister]

btw I just lol'd at that "slience the gpus"

Haha

 

[Bones]

save your crash with shadowplay

Now the "in" thing is to livestream it but shadowplay works too.

No, I do not want all this in my vehicle and since I've worked on vehicles that range from stuff way back in the good old days all the way up to what's out now I can tell you I'd keep the old stuff.
A self driving vehicle is right out for me, will never have or even consider such.

and stuff like "they'll turn off your car while driving" / "update while you drive" / "will take Control of your car" …. yeah.

So please, take your tinfoil hats off and think About the Arguments you're unpacking to bash a Topic before Posting.

Have you ever really wondered why new vehicles today all have those little antennaes on them?
I mean all of them you see now.

If it's possible to unlock a car from a computer terminal that's a continent away you cannot or ever will convince me hacking a vehicle or even seizing control over it cannot be done because I know the hacking part of it has already been before and can happen again.

And yes, I know a vehicle CAN be shutdown remotely.
I'm even personally aware of one such case a person got behind on car payments and one day, it just woudn't start anymore.

Point is they have access and control if they really want it to way more than you'd believe possible.

As for self-driving vehicles, no way jose - Won't have one here, now or ever.

 

[Valantar]

Can someone explain what "software-defined vehicle" means - and, I should add, in a manner that is actually reasonable and not just a bunch of tech PR bable and buzzwords thrown together? Is it no longer defined by, you know, its capabilites as a vehicle (wheeled movement, motor-based propulsion, passenger/cargo carrying capacity, etc)? With this, can I download an update (or DLC, I guess) to turn my sedan into a sports car, tow truck, or fire engine? If not, I might go so far as to say (gasp!) that this sounds like yet another meaningless buzzword implying far more than what it can possibly deliver.