UAE to host first-ever autonomous car race

On April 27, the first ever Abu Dhabi Autonomous Racing League (A2RL) autonomous car race with a prize fund of $2.25 million will be held on the five-kilometer Yas Marina track in Abu Dhabi (UAE). 8 teams from the United States, Germany, China, UAE, Hungary, Italy, Singapore and Switzerland will take part in the race.

The races will be held on Dallara Super Formula SF23 cars with the same set of autonomous technologies, which equalizes the chances of all participants to win. A2RL differs from the famous “Formula 1” in that the functions of the pilot are performed by a computer/central control unit with specially written code for artificial intelligence.

The cars are equipped with turbocharged Honda and Toyota engines, which allows them to accelerate up to 300 km/h. The situation on the track will be controlled by a complex of scanners, radars, lidar, ultrasonic sensors and gyroscopes.

An important feature of the race – complex maneuvers AI-algorithm together with programmers will have to master directly on the track. In total, the cars will have to complete 16 laps with 16 complex turns in each. YouTube-channel A2RL will provide an opportunity to see the race to all comers.