Risky Business - Going Driverless In Moscow

In certain sunny climes, self-driving cars are multiplying. Dressed in signature spinning sensors, the vehicles putter along roads in California, Arizona and Nevada, hoovering up data that will one day make them smart enough to run without humans.

Besides perennial sunshine, those places share other common traits: wide, well-manicured roads, functional traffic enforcement, and agreeable local governments. 

A suburb of Phoenix in Arizona became the first US town to host autonomous cars on public streets without human safety drivers. Courtesy of Waymo, they’re expected to start carrying passengers within the next few months. 

If you ask many Silicon Valley companies, the future of driverless cars is just a couple of years away. But halfway across the world, the outlook is a lot more skeptical.

“We don’t have the luxury of California roads,” says Olga Uskova of Cognitive Technologies, a Russian software maker that specialises in autonomous vehicles. “The environment is ever-changing: the snow has covered traffic signs; it’s raining on your wind-shield and the sun is blocking you. Our people train using these kinds of data.”

Uskova asserts that technology tested in sun-drenched utopias can’t possibly translate to a city like Moscow. Gnarly road planning, terrible weather and reckless habits make the Russian capital one of the worst cities in the world for drivers. 
With roads that spread like a cobweb away from the Kremlin, disturbances like car wrecks, construction and government motorcades can wreak havoc for miles. Seat belts are scorned, and traffic laws widely ignored; speeding violations are enforced with $4 fines, paid by phone. 

It’s no surprise that Russia’s rate of road fatalities is nearly double that of the US, with an average of 20 serious accidents a day just in Moscow. Or, for that matter, that dashcam videos of Russian road fights and collisions make up such a popular subgenre on YouTube.

But most of the world’s roads look more like Russia than Mountain View, and according to Uskova, that gives Russian developers an edge in building the brains of autonomous cars.

That theory was tested at a recent event in Moscow, advertised as the world’s first hackathon for driverless cars. In an austere, Soviet-era dormitory bedecked with Steve Jobs and Elon Musk posters, top engineering students from far-flung schools like MIT, Cambridge and Peking University sank into beanbag chairs for a three-day coding binge. “We’re here because it’s a chance to change the world over the next 10 to 15 years,” said Mitch Mueller, a student who traveled from the University of Wisconsin to compete. They were also competing for a cash prize, bragging rights and, most importantly, the attention of participating companies, including Uber and Nvidia, eager to recruit the next generation of AI talent.

The event had another purpose: to advance a credo that when it comes to autonomous cars, tougher conditions produce smarter technology. Lidar, the expensive, light-pulsing sensors relied upon by current autonomous car models, is worthless in snow and thus “a fake”, says Uskova. Instead, cars should be trained to operate using high-definition cameras, low-cost radars and powerful AI that mimics the human brain.

As the 150 engineers pored over Moscow road data, it was obvious that this vision is a long way off. Most cars struggled to identify signs, for instance, which were hard to detect in snow or rain; and for non-Russian speakers, the task was practically impossible. “The problem is that the signs are small, and in Russia they look very similar,” explained Sami Mian, a computer scientist at Arizona State University. “The main difference is numbers and arrows, and a city entry sign can look almost the same as a stop sign. The top team had 40% accuracy.”

That team, three local guys from Moscow, had tapped into a secret weapon: a trove of the popular dashcam footage, which had been harvested and stored at nearby Moscow State University. 

Derived from 100,000 dashcam videos, that data served as the building blocks of a basic neural network hammered out by the cigarette-puffing coders, who mentioned that they had slept a total of five hours over three days. 
Russian-built autonomous systems are already in use by Kamaz, Russia’s largest truck maker, and an agricultural equipment company. Both are working with Cognitive Technologies to build autonomous machines. But adapting the technology for city use, and bringing it to the international stage, is a steep battle. 

No government agency has developed regulations for autonomous cars, so road testing is constrained to designated testing zones.  

The only car testing zone in Moscow is a 400m track embellished with pedestrian crossings, road signs, markings and a section with circular traffic. It’s a lousy facsimile of Moscow roads, or any road. But even worse is its location far outside the city center: a planned ride-along was scrapped because of bad traffic.

Guardian:   Image: Krymski VAl Street, Moscow : Bezik

You Might Also Read: 

Self-Drive Cars Coming to Manhattan:

Driverless Truck Fleet Gets UK Trial:

 

« Iran Turns Off The Internet
The Role Of Russian Influence In The Brexit Referendum Is Unclear »

Infosecurity Europe
CyberSecurity Jobsite
Perimeter 81

Directory of Suppliers

ManageEngine

ManageEngine

As the IT management division of Zoho Corporation, ManageEngine prioritizes flexible solutions that work for all businesses, regardless of size or budget.

The PC Support Group

The PC Support Group

A partnership with The PC Support Group delivers improved productivity, reduced costs and protects your business through exceptional IT, telecoms and cybersecurity services.

Jooble

Jooble

Jooble is a job search aggregator operating in 71 countries worldwide. We simplify the job search process by displaying active job ads from major job boards and career sites across the internet.

XYPRO Technology

XYPRO Technology

XYPRO is the market leader in HPE Non-Stop Security, Risk Management and Compliance.

CYRIN

CYRIN

CYRIN® Cyber Range. Real Tools, Real Attacks, Real Scenarios. See why leading educational institutions and companies in the U.S. have begun to adopt the CYRIN® system.

National Cyber League (NCL)

National Cyber League (NCL)

The NCL provides a virtual training ground for participants to develop, practice, and validate their cybersecurity knowledge and skills.

Cobalt Strike

Cobalt Strike

Cobalt Strike is penetration testing software designed to execute targeted attacks.

ePLDT

ePLDT

ePLDT delivers best-in-class digital business solutions that include Cloud, Cyber Security, purpose-built Data Center facilities and Managed IT Services.

Sertainty

Sertainty

Sertainty enables developers to mix intelligence into data files for active risk mitigation and data control. Discover the impact of Data: Empowered.

Have I Been Pwned (HIBP)

Have I Been Pwned (HIBP)

Have I Been Pwned is a free resource for anyone to quickly assess if they may have been put at risk due to an online account of theirs having been compromised or "pwned" in a data breach.

Ampyx Cyber

Ampyx Cyber

Ampyx Cyber (formerly Ampere Industrial Security) is an industrial security firm. We specialize in industrial control systems (ICS) and operational technology (OT) security.

National Cryptologic Foundation (NCF) - USA

National Cryptologic Foundation (NCF) - USA

The National Cryptologic Foundation strives to influence the cryptologic future by sharing our educational resources, stimulating new knowledge, and commemorating our heritage.

Womble Bond Dickinson

Womble Bond Dickinson

Womble Bond Dickinson is a transatlantic law firm, providing high-quality legal experience and outstanding personal service from key locations across the United Kingdom and United States.

Assured Clarity

Assured Clarity

Assured Clarity are a global consultancy, specialising in Risk Management and Data Privacy, through Education, Awareness and Training, throughout an organisation.

Sendmarc

Sendmarc

Sendmarc automates the process of protecting your domain from being used in email impersonation and phishing attacks.

Intel Ignite

Intel Ignite

Intel Ignite is an internationally renowned acceleration program for early-stage deep tech startups.

Omantel Innovation Labs

Omantel Innovation Labs

The Omantel Innovation Labs is a platform to enable startups and innovators to develop and commercialize solutions within selected technology verticals including cybersecurity.

Nerds On Site

Nerds On Site

Nerds On Site provide on-site & in-home IT and technical support, managed IT services, and cyber security through our collaborative team of highly-trained IT and Security professionals.

One Step Secure IT

One Step Secure IT

One Step provide Managed IT Services, Cybersecurity Protections, and Compliance to businesses in the USA nationwide.

Orca Fraud

Orca Fraud

Orca is an AI-driven fraud orchestration platform. We empower fraud fighters to outpace fraud using our custom ML models.

Invary

Invary

Invary's expert Runtime Integrity solution, powered by NSA-licensed technology, verifies the security and confidentiality of your system.