Dror Jerushalmi, CEO and co-founder of Valens, the inventor and world leader in HDBaseT technology, recently attended Needham’s Inaugural Automotive Tech Day in New York City. Jerushalmi, along with several other technology and automotive professionals, joined a panel discussion on the roadmap to the autonomous vehicle.

During the event, panel members discussed several aspects of the future of autonomous vehicles:

1. Human Factor

At this point, statistics involving safety of autonomous vehicles don’t incorporate human factors, which refer to the driver’s temperament. This research cannot be obtained until autonomous driving is no longer dependent on supervision. Panel members stressed their refusal to wait until something goes off-course to become aware of this issue.

2. LiDAR

While many still utilize LiDAR as cameras, LiDAR technology is best used for distance tracking and obstacle detection. Panel members also mentioned that once LiDAR sensors stop being used as cameras, their high price tag will go down, making production cheaper.

3. Production Overkill

In the current autonomous vehicle marketplace, there is production “overkill” of technologies since consumer adoption is low. However, once trust is finally established amongst manufacturers and consumers, the use of countless technologies and suppliers will cutback.

4. Level Four Autonomous Vehicles

Level four, or “mind-off,” vehicles are the first stage in vehicle autonomy without a human driver. To get these vehicles on the road, trust must be built between the car, its technologies and the driver. It is critical for level four vehicles to notice driving hazards and react to dangerous situations to be safe enough to hit the roads.

Although fully autonomous vehicles may take a few more years to reach mass production, there are many improvements and strides being made in the production process. And, while there are plenty of bright minds in the field, autonomous vehicles are still new territory – and there is a steep learning curve. Software must be perfected, and automakers need optimal vehicle infrastructure to ensure safety on the roads.

HDBaseT Automotive is the solution to many of today’s challenges in in-vehicle connectivity.  It enables simultaneous tunneling of high-throughput video and data streams, over a single, low-cost unshielded cable, while guaranteeing top performance and near-zero latency.