Ford Creates Latitude AI for Automated Driving Development
Ford Motor Company, which ended its investment in Argo AI late last year, has announced the creation of Latitude AI, a wholly owned subsidiary focused on developing a hands-free, eyes-off-the-road automated driving system for millions of vehicles. The company said it hired about 550 employees from Argo AI to help staff the new division.
The automaker said Latitude adds experience in machine learning, robotics, software, sensors, systems engineering and operations talent to expand development efforts in automated driving technology, including its Ford BlueCruise, which has accumulated more than 50 million miles of hands-free driving.
Latitude aims to reimagine the customer experience by automating driving during times that can be tedious, stressful and unpleasant, such as bumper-to-bumper traffic, or on long stretches of highway. Ford cited a statistic from INRIX that said the average driver in the U.S. spends nearly 100 hours per year sitting in traffic.
“We see automated driving technology as an opportunity to redefine the relationship between people and their vehicles,” said Doug Field, chief advanced product development and technology officer at Ford. “Customers using BlueCruise are already experiencing the benefits of hands-off driving. The deep experience and talent in our Latitude team will help us accelerate the development of all-new automated driving technology – with the goal of not only making travel safer, less stressful and more enjoyable, but ultimately over time giving our customers some of their day back.”
Sammy Omari, executive director of ADAS Technologies at Ford, will also serve as the CEO of Latitude. Peter Carr will be the chief technology officer, overseeing the product and technical development. David Gollb was named president, responsible for business operations.
“We believe automated driving technology will help improve safety while unlocking all-new customer experiences that reduce stress and in the future will help free up a driver’s time to focus on what they choose,” said Omari. “The expertise of the Latitude team will further complement and enhance Ford’s in-house global ADAS team in developing future driver assist technologies, ultimately delivering on the many benefits of automation.”
Latitude is based in Pittsburgh, with additional engineering hubs in Dearborn, Mich., and Palo Alto, Calif. The company said it will also operate a highway-speed test track facility in Greenville, S.C.
