(Reuters) – Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi, where the Formula One season ended last month, will soon be the site of a trial run for a driverless race car. The car, called the Dallara Super Formula SF23, operates via software algorithms instead of human control and can reach speeds of up to 300 kilometers per hour (186 miles per hour). It is equipped with a computer in place of the cockpit and does not require a steering wheel, seat, pedals, or protective halo.
The Abu Dhabi Autonomous Racing League (A2RL) will debut its first race at the grand prix circuit on April 28, 2024, offering a prize fund of $2.25 million. In its first year, the league will feature ten single-car teams, as the development of driverless technology is not yet advanced enough for multiple cars to race at high speeds simultaneously.
“We know that two (driverless) cars can race well on a track together, what we’ll be pushing to see is can you achieve an outcome where three or four cars are racing competitively against each other?” Dr. Tom McCarthy, executive director of operating company ASPIRE, told Reuters. He added, “We’re at the frontiers of science on this one. If we got to a point that 10 cars are racing (together) within the next five years I think that would be a huge achievement.”
ASPIRE, a part of an Advanced Technology Research Council established by Abu Dhabi, aims to leverage technology to diversify the emirate’s economy. Driverless racing has been previously attempted with the all-electric Formula E series planning a ‘Roborace’ as far back as 2015. A ‘race’ held in 2017 between two cars at speeds of up to 185 kph, using sensors and on-board systems to navigate a Buenos Aires street circuit, resulted in one machine crashing.
However, the A2RL cars use petrol engines and the league focuses on mobility and safety applications for road cars. The driverless teams will utilize identical cars run by universities and elite institutions in Asia, Europe, and the U.S., although each team can adapt their own software algorithms. Once the race starts, the car operates completely autonomously and the only human intervention is a ‘kill switch’ to shut it down if necessary.
Former F1 driver Daniil Kvyat has tested a manned prototype of the car, which is based on the Japan-based Super Formula, the second fastest racing series in the world after Formula One. The league has plans to expand its calendar to include three races with tracks in Europe and Asia in addition to Yas Marina Circuit, and has also considered autonomous drone racing, off-road buggy races, and boat races.
A maximum of 10,000 tickets will be sold at nominal prices for the April race, but the league’s focus is primarily online and on virtual reality potential. ASPIRE also asserted that autonomous racing does not pose a threat to conventional racing series, as it focuses on ensuring that racing remains a human endeavor and does not seek to eliminate human involvement in the sport.
(Reporting by Alan Baldwin in London; Editing by Josie Kao)
