APRIL 2024 AFTERMARKET 27 www.aftermarketonline.net Best of the best in automated mobility? Enter the Self-Driving Industry Awards Presented by Carsofthefuture.co.uk, entries for the second annual SelfDriving Industry Awards are open now, to once again celebrate excellence in automated mobility, in the UK and internationally. Last year’s inaugural event saw companies from four continents attend a glittering ceremony at Margate’s Turner Contemporary gallery, with Jifeline winning the Aftermarket Award, Stagecoach and Alexander Dennis winning the headline Vehicle of the Year award for Project CAVForth, and a Special Recognition Award for Aftermarket’s very own Alex Wells. The Self-Driving Industry Awards 2024 will follow the same peerled safety-focused format, with entrants in 10 categories – Aftermarket, Design, Hardware, Insurance, Legal, Research, Software, Testing, Trust and V2X – gaining the right to nominate an individual and a vehicle for the top honours. The deadline for entries is 5pm UK-time on Friday 20 September, with all shortlisted candidates receiving an invitation to the hottest show in town… the SDIA 2024 awards ceremony. To enter, please visit the Carsofthefuture.co.uk Awards Hats off to the BBC for delivering some of the best consumer reporting we’ve seen on self-driving to date. For starters, we highly recommend the 2023 Royal Institution Christmas Lectures. First televised on the BBC in 1936, they were conceived by Michael Faraday as an exciting new way of presenting science to young people. This year, Mike Wooldridge, Professor of Artificial Intelligence (AI) at the University of Oxford, explored “The dream of driverless cars”, with help from our inaugural Self-Driving Industry Legend, Professor Paul Newman CBE, of Oxa. This included analysing a real-life incident which occurred while Mike was travelling in Oxa’s test car in Oxford (with a safety driver). A human-driven car drove way too close to them on a roundabout, but the self-driving vehicle handled it smoothly and safely. Cue huge applause from the live teen audience. Then, on the days in between Christmas and New Year, James May (of The Grand Tour and formerly Top Gear) assumed guest editorship of the flagship Today news and current affairs programme. This prestigious role has been filled in the past by Prince Harry, Greta Thunberg, Benjamin Zephaniah, Melinda Gates, Jarvis Cocker, Lewis Hamilton and Professor Stephen Hawking. One of the three main subjects May chose to investigate, along with tea and hobbies, was self-driving. As sceptical as you’d expect, he first spoke to Dame Wendy Hall, Professor of Computer Science at the University of Southampton, who has serious concerns about a “hybrid future” of mixed self-driving and human traffic. Then, as with the Christmas Lecture, Paul Newman came in to bat for self-driving. He took May for a ride in an Oxa Ford Mondeo test car (with a safety driver) through an industrial estate on the outskirts of Oxford. “So, there we had a speedhump with a pedestrian crossing on top, and it recognised all of that,” admitted May. “This is annoying. This is slightly demolishing my prejudices. I have to say, I really might have to rewrite them a little bit.” Newman softened the blow, saying: “You’re not wrong in the sense that it’s not immediate, but it’s hard to believe this technology isn’t going to arrive, and it’s hard to believe it isn’t going to be valuable and produce more choices.” There followed a long interview with Transport Secretary Mark Harper, who explained: “Legislation is going through Parliament at the moment, so hopefully we’ll get that through by the end of 2024. “What we’re doing is putting in place the proper legislation so that people can have full confidence in the safety.” Self-driving on the BBC: Today and Christmas Lecture We have a range of print and online advertising opportunities available. For more details and our latest Media Pack please contact Angela Lyus. Angela Lyus | Head of Sales +44 (0) 7823 736629 | anglea@aftermarket.co.uk www.aftermarketonline.net
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