The Abu Dhabi Autonomous Racing League (A2RL) completed the world’s first autonomous auto race at the Yas Marina Circuit before a full front straight grandstand on the evening of 27 April 2024.
Four cars qualified for the final event, attempting what had never been done before racing wheel-to-wheel without any human intervention.
See: https://redskyalliance.org/automotive/hacking-your-new-car
Team TUM (Technical University of Munich) won the driverless race in a last-lap dash, overtaking Italian team Unimore. At the same time, another German squad, Constructor AI, took the final podium position. Earlier in the evening, former Formula 1 driver Danill Kvyat participated in another groundbreaking exhibition competing with the Technology Innovation Institute’s AI-driven car. The two traded positions throughout several laps of Yas Marina’s F1 Circuit, demonstrating the AI car’s ability to interact with the unpredictability of a human driver. In the end, the AI car finished the demonstration race just 10.38 seconds behind Kvyat.[1]
Eight teams in all were entered for the inaugural race. After three rounds of single-car style qualifying, the top four advanced to the final race. American team Code 19 racing struggled, posting the sixth-best time. Nevertheless, team principal Lawrence Walter was thrilled to be part of the first-of-its-kind event. “So many firsts have been achieved here today. It’s been an amazing start,” he said.
The pole-winning car from Italian entry Polimove shot off to an early lead following the first two laps of the planned eight-lap contest being run in virtual safety car conditions to allow the cars to get the tires of the Dallara Super Formula SF23 up to temperature. Polimove’s lead would, unfortunately, be short-lived. Coming into the chicane at the end of Yas Marina’s long back straight, the car, nicknamed ‘Eva,’ locked the rear wheels under braking and looped it for a spin. The second-place car from Unimore passed safely to take over the lead, but the race was red-flagged with Eva stuck on the track. The race was restarted following another couple of VSC laps, setting up a one-lap dash to the finish.
Unimore’s ‘Gianna’ got the jump when the race returned to green. Leading into the same chicane that befell its Italian counterpart earlier in the race, Gianna went wide, entering the first left-hand corner, opening the door for TUM’s ‘Hailey’ to take the more aggressive line for the lead and hold it to the finish for the win.
“This event has been nothing short of extraordinary, and the finale was our defining moment,” said TUM team principal Simon Hoffman. “We are thrilled with the outcome; it speaks volumes about our collective engineering prowess, coding expertise, and sheer determination. It’s a testament to the incredible power of AI driving the evolution of autonomous mobility into the future.
Jim McKee, CEO of Red Sky Alliance Corp., stated, “As a lifelong fan of the Indianapolis 500, the longest-running auto race in the USA, which continues to be a battle of both drivers and machines, I find autonomous auto racing of no interest.”
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[1] https://racer.com/2024/04/29/autonomous-racing-completes-a-world-first/
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