Tesla ‘running tests’ on in-house AI chips

Tesla is developing its own artificial intelligence (AI) system in a bid to “decrease reliance on other companies”, reports CNBC.

Sources told the website that the Los Angeles-based carmaker, founded by South African billionaire Elon Musk, is “running tests” on its own AI processor, designed to handle autonomous vehicle functions.

While Tesla currently relies on tech firm Nvidia to supply processors for its cars, Engadget reports that the new AI chip is being built in-house with the help of computer processing giant AMD.

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This allows the electric car company to “create a technology that can do precisely what it wants to achieve”, the website says, such as “true autonomous driving.”

“It’s a move that would clearly be in line with the recent hiring of ex-AMD executive Jim Keller to replace Chris Lattner as head of Tesla’s Autopilot hardware engineering effort,” reports The Verge.

Musk’s company is also “developing a new hardware suite with more computing power to help achieve its goal of full automation”, adds the site.

Building processors in-house is a growing trend, says Fortune, as "companies like Apple and Google have recently developed custom computer chips tailored for various AI-related tasks”.

However, the majority of car manufactures still rely on third-party tech companies to provide digital technology for their vehicles.

In May, BMW announced a partnership with chipmaker Intel and automotive tech firm Delphi to help develop driverless systems for a “state-of-the-art autonomous driving platform” due to appear in 2021.