4 min read
AI will shape the future of mobility – in fact, it already does
The future of mobility is one of the most discussed topics of today. Against the background of increasing traffic, increased number of road accidents, and the urgent need to reduce CO2 emission, there is no doubt that the road environment, with the transportation of humans and goods, will have to change tremendously in the very near future. But why is artificial intelligence the key enabling technology to master the transition to highly-individualized, environmental-friendly, and autonomous mobility systems and not humans?
In the light of an increase of plus 90 million new cars on roads per year and an estimation of 2.0 billion vehicles on the roads year 2030 (today it’s plus 1 billion), the future of mobility will for sure affect both the environment and us as humans. Today more than 25 000 people lose their lives on EU roads every year. Many more are seriously injured. Numbers that increase every year and profoundly affect not solely individuals but society at large – at enormous costs. This at a time when cars have never been safer, roads have never been better maintained and controlled, and engines are less fuel-demanding and eco-friendlier than ever. Still, we’re staring at the increasing bulk of very dark figures.
Evidence has shown that a vast majority of traffic accidents are generally caused by drivers’ recklessness and disregard for traffic norms. What drivers do and think behind the wheel seems to be unaffected by traffic regulations. Knowing that individual driving behavior has in fact, just as much of an impact on road safety as any external factor, we’re at a stage when we need to better understand ourselves as drivers and our individual impact on road safety much better.
One often-raised factor when it comes to cars and humans is that humans can’t comprehend speed. We simply don’t have it in our genes. With very limited relation to a speed exceeding 50 km / h, we remain blind and blunt in relation to speed and its natural risks. We don’t have the basic instincts in place to get it right and cannot make the rapid decisions needed when we’re moving at high speed. Simply put, our brains do not have the capacity to instinctively react on speed – they are not trained for a long time enough.
With this said, we’re at a point when we rapidly need to embrace alternative ways to get alerted and informed when we expose ourselves and others to danger and, at the same time, make driving much more smart, efficient, and safe. That’s where AI comes into the picture.
Data analysis using traditional statistical or manual methods is extremely challenging and time-consuming. Should we take in all aspects contributing to accidents, it would take years before we can serve a correct analysis. Well-trained AI algorithms do the same job quicker than in a heartbeat. Since it’s the only knowledge it has, it becomes the expert of it. That’s how Artificial intelligence supports us at its best. AI replaces and supports us where we fail, and it does so by its capacity to significantly process large amounts of information at an extremely high speed – which is highly valued and needed for example when it comes to alerting and avoiding accidents on the road.
Providing AI-powered assessment software that communicates in real-time to car drivers on the roads is proven to decrease their risk of a collision by up to 40%. This is due to how the AI instantly takes their individual driving situation into consideration second per second whilst communicating crucial information and value directly to the driver. A job no human nor human interference can perform in real-time.
At Greater Than, we have listened and learned over the years. Since 2004, when we started to collect driving data and train our AI, we’ve been devoted to developing and deploying AI-based solutions assessing driving behavior. Today our AI predicts accidents with 99.98% accuracy in real-time, which also fosters better behavior and smarter decisions on the road. Our genuine dedication is to put even more advanced solutions inside vehicles, in the strong belief that no driver should drive without full and transparent access to individual driving feedback in real-time. A standard that is as important as having cars equipped with a three-point belt and airbag. The change in mobility comes with higher awareness. What humans cannot interpret and perceive – AI immediately makes visible and comprehensible.
