TOKYO -- Foxconn's platform for electric vehicles will feature driver assistance technology similar to that used by Tesla and Nissan Motor when it is

Foxconn EVs to take on Tesla with autonomous driving tech

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2021-06-25 12:00:04

TOKYO -- Foxconn's platform for electric vehicles will feature driver assistance technology similar to that used by Tesla and Nissan Motor when it is launched this year, with plans for a higher level of autonomous capability in 2022, a Japanese tech executive involved in the project has told Nikkei Asia.

The plans underline how Foxconn, best known as an assembler of consumer electronics, hopes to challenge established automakers with its MIH "EV open platform" project, which aims to produce a "kit," including software and hardware that can help new EV manufacturers scale up quickly.

Shinpei Kato, founder and chief technology officer of Japanese autonomous driving startup Tier IV, which is part of the Foxconn project and heads its autonomous driving software, said in an interview that the first-generation EV Kit will provide so-called Level 2 advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS). This level enables automated steering, braking and accelerating for cruising and lane changes to support the driver.

Level 4 autonomous driving -- defined as requiring no human involvement under limited conditions -- should be integrated into the next version of the kit planned for 2022, Kato added. That is when Tier IV's own open-source operating system for driverless cars, called Autoware, will be ready, he said.