Samsung is allowed to start testing self-driving cars in South Korea

Samsung has received permission from the South Korean Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport to test a self-driving car on public roads. This is reported by the English-language Korean newspaper The Korea Herald.

It is a Hyundai car that uses many sensors, cameras, computer modules, artificial intelligence and deep learning technology. This car, which is still under development, should therefore have good self-driving properties, even in bad weather. More is not yet known about the car from Samsung.

The South Korean government has recently issued about twenty permits for self-driving car test projects. According to the ministry, this is a result of less strict regulations aimed at promoting the growth of this industry. The less strict rules mean that it is no longer necessary to have two passengers, but only one, to drive in the self-driving car. It would also now be possible to make cars without steering wheel and pedals.

In 2015, Samsung announced that it was setting up a new team to work on technologies for self-driving cars. The team would mainly work on the various components for a self-driving car, rather than focusing on building an entire vehicle. The development would mainly focus on in-car entertainment, satellite navigation and autonomous driving technologies. With this, Samsung hopes to set up a new profitable division.

Earlier this month, Apple also received a license to test self-driving cars in the US state of California. This is a Lexus RX450h, which is recent seen by a Twitter user. According to Bloomberg, this car would have, among other things, a lidar system, two radars and a number of cameras.