Autonomous cars, also known as self-driving cars, utilize an entirely automated system of top-notch 3D imaging and Artificial Intelligence to sense their environment and operate without human engagement. They depend on sensors, complex algorithms, actuators, machine learning systems, and powerful CPUs to execute software. Advanced software then processes all this information and turns it into instructions that enable control of the car as a human driver would.
Below are five of the most innovative autonomous car brands in the market today.

1. Waymo
Founded in 2009, Waymo manufactures a variety of self-driving vehicles to cater to the transportation needs of drivers countrywide. They offer commuter vehicles and self-driving trucks for use in both personal and commercial purposes. The company was founded based on research projects by Google, which is where it traces its origin. Today it delivers certified and proven self-driving technologies designed to respond swiftly and efficiently to environmental factors and user input.

2. Voyage
Voyage targets a unique market, the elderly community. It aims to broaden the self-driven vehicle market by providing senior citizens with a more reliable, affordable, and safer means of commuting. Movement in retirement communities is slower in the streets than in other neighborhoods, leading to the company’s decision to roll out its services in these communities, therefore, enabling them to effectively test the proficiencies of their vehicles without risking any lives.

3. Pony.ai
Pony.ai, a Chinese startup founded in 2016, is one of the leading and most innovative autonomous vehicle brands in the market whose goal is to advance progress in self-driving technology using Artificial Intelligence. It got the green light to test its driverless vehicles in 3 cities from California’s Department of Motor Vehicles in 2019. The company first got approval to test its autonomous cars in 2017 with safety drivers behind the wheel. In 2019, it launched a public facing robo taxi service (Pony Pilot) in Irvine, California, the first in the State. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, the robotaxi service diversified into delivering packages from online shopping platforms to customers living in Irvine. The company hopes to keep making advances in autonomous vehicle technology using practical engineering.

4. Volvo
Volvo is known as a champion for safety in automobiles, having invented several impressive safety features for vehicles over the years. In addition, it is putting a lot of effort into ensuring its cars are hardware ready for their next-generation vehicles. For example, in 2019, they tested new audio technology that aims to prevent motion sickness, a side effect of autonomous vehicles, according to experts. In addition, its next-generation XC90 will be furnished with a superior LiDAR sensor and is predicted to be among the first Level 4 autonomous cars to be available for sale.

5. Tesla
Tesla joined the autonomous vehicle industry in 2014. All its Model S or Model X vehicles manufactured from September 2014 were equipped with the necessary hardware to incorporate the autopilot feature. Autopilot gives the cars almost 100% autonomy; however, human intervention is still required in certain conditions. In 2015, it upgraded the autopilot software to furnish the Model S sufficiently. All its vehicles produced from October 2016 are built with Autopilot 2 hardware which the company is developing to full self-driving capabilities.