Tesla Gets Competition From Nvidia In Self Driving Cars
Nvidia is quietly signing deals with some of the world's biggest automakers, and its self-driving platform looks remarkably like Tesla's most prized technology. The question now is whether Tesla's brand can hold off a rival that plays for the entire…
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Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA | NVDA Price Prediction) announced a deal with Volvo yesterday. Volvo is far from one of the world’s largest car companies. However, Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, which owns it, is a player in the Chinese car sector—the world’s largest car market by far. The Nvidia product sounds and looks a lot like Tesla’s (NASDAQ: TSLA) self-driving feature. Tesla is working hard to roll out the product and hopes to gain approval in several countries soon.
New Volvos will have what it calls “eyes-off and mind-off.” InsideEVs reports, “By using Nvidia’s Hyperion platform, which includes custom high-powered chips and a full suite of sensors mounted around the vehicle, Volvo says its new point-to-point system will offer Level 2++ functionality.” The technology is also part of partnerships with Mercedes and Hyundai. Tesla has the equivalent of Level 2++ in its “Full Self-Driving (Supervised)” product. Nvidia’s product equals that. Volvo’s product launches in three years, which puts it at a disadvantage.
Of course, Tesla’s technology only works on a Tesla. Nvidia can eventually claim the advantage of partnerships that could extend to many manufacturers. To some extent, Tesla’s brand power will be needed to win over customers.
Tesla has a growing number of self-driving competitors, which makes it less likely it can own a large part of the market share across the industry. The primary rival is Google’s Waymo, which is on the road in both the US and Europe. It can claim a lead in terms of testing footprint.
The winners of the self-driving race will win for two reasons. One is the strength of technology. The other is regulatory approval. Depending on the geography, approval can happen at the national, state, or city level. Products are not considered “safe enough” today to operate without human supervision. Meanwhile, it is not good news for Tesla that Nvidia is winning over more car company partners.
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