Samsung given approval to develop autonomous driving technology

02 May 2017

Technology provider Samsung is the latest company to announce plans for autonomous vehicle technology, joining luminaries such as Apple and Google in the marketplace.

The South Korean Government has granted the company permission to test its self-driving vehicles on the country’s roads. While Samsung has said it does not plan to develop its own vehicles, the move is a big step to allow the electronics division an opportunity to keep pace with its rivals in an emerging technology.

Samsung is the first electronics group in South Korea to gain permission to test self-driving cars, and has already augmented a commercial Hyundai model with advanced sensors and deep-learning technology.

The reliance on technology will see automotive manufacturers work closely with technology and communications companies to ensure that autonomous cars can work efficiently on the road. This will allow both Samsung and Apple to devote their expertise in the sensor and data gathering fields into a project rather than start from scratch with their own vehicle. The Californian giant has already had a licence granted to develop its own autonomous technology.

There have been some rumours concerning Samsung entering the fray related to autonomous vehicle technology, however the move gained momentum when the company purchased automotive component supplier Harman International in October 2016. At the time the South Korean company said it would give it: ′A significant presence in the large and rapidly growing market for connected technologies, particularly automotive electronics.’

With products including display technology and semiconductors, Samsung is seen as having a more natural fit with the technology under the skin of a driverless car. This seems to have been confirmed by local Korean media, which quoted the company as saying: ′Samsung Electronics plans to develop algorithms, sensors and computer modules that will make a self-driving car that is reliable even in the worst weather conditions.’