UK-based artificial intelligence (AI) -driven software company, FiveAI, secured $2.7 m in Series Seed funding led by Amadeus Capital Partners. The company is aiming to remove the need for any 3D mapping that most autonomous vehicles require, by utilizing AI, machine learning and computer vision technologies. The funding is minuscule compared to what competitors have in their bank account, but the company plans on reaching a simulator and supervised road testing before raising a much larger round.
Meanwhile, Boland is talking up the U.K. and FiveAI’s potential as an autonomous vehicle leader. He says the country has the software engineer talent and AI expertise required, not least because of the high standard of AI/machine learning teaching at leading universities, such as Oxford, Cambridge and Imperial. He also thinks the U.K. is well-positioned to develop a regulatory environment to help accelerate the development of self-driving cars.