Tata Elxsi Boldly Goes Where No Self-Driving Car Has Gone Before: India

Because of its chaotic streets, India will be the last place on Earth Uber intendeds to bring its self-driving cars, joked CEO Travis Kalanick in an interview with Indian television station NDTV. "There's going to have to be major, major advances in AI to navigate the streets of India," Kalanick said in an interview, explaining long lead time of replacing taxi drivers with self-driving cars. Indian automotive technology and design firm Tata Elxsi is seeking permission from the government to test autonomous vehicles on public roads in Bangalore. The supplier has retrofitted two Tata vehicles with Lidar, ultrasonic sensors, radars, cameras, vehicle-to-everything technology, and artificial intelligence platform, and has already been testing the vehicles on the outskirts of Karnataka's capital--home to many technology companies' Indian headquarters. Navigating India's often unmarked streets, loosely observed traffic laws, and free-range mammals would be the ultimate stress test for any autonomous vehicle company--even Google has expressed skepticism over introducing the technology to the traffic-challenged country.