S-Class Sedan

Segment
Sedan

Mercedes-Benz and BMW recently announced that their partnership to develop self-driving technology was canceled after a mutual, amicable decision. It seemed like that the two companies would each split up to develop their own technology and just days after this decision, Mercedes has already announced a new partnership with NVIDIA, the world leader in accelerated computing and one of the co-developers of Sony's Vision-S electric car concept.

NVIDIA and Mercedes will partner to develop an in-vehicle computing system and AI computing infrastructure, which will be rolled out across the automaker's entire lineup starting in 2024. The technology won't be ready in time for the upcoming reveal of the 2021 Mercedes-Benz S-Class but it could be added later in the lifecycle, or potentially to the forthcoming Mercedes-Benz EQS.

This new software will be based on the NVIDIA Drive platform, which enables advanced automated driving functionalities. Not only will this system be available on a variety of Mercedes models, but it will standard equipment. Mercedes says the system will be able to fully automate regular driving routes from address to address and will include numerous future safety and convenience applications that can be purchased and installed via over-the-air software updates.

"We are excited to work with Mercedes-Benz. It's the perfect partner for us given its long record of innovation and our strong technical relationship," said Jensen Huang, founder, and CEO of NVIDIA. "Together, we're going to revolutionize the car ownership experience, making the vehicle software programmable and continuously upgradeable via over the air updates. Every future Mercedes-Benz with the NVIDIA Drive system will come with a team of expert AI and software engineers continuously developing, refining, and enhancing the car over its lifetime."

"We are delighted to be able to extend our cooperation with NVIDIA," Ola Kallenius, Chairman of the Board of Management of Daimler AG and Mercedes-Benz AG added. "This new platform will become an efficient, centralized, and software-defined system in our future Mercedes-Benz vehicles. NVIDIA's AI computing architecture will help us streamline our journey towards autonomous driving. These new capabilities and upgrades will be downloaded from the cloud, improving safety, increasing value, and extending the joy of ownership for all Mercedes-Benz customers."

This isn't the first time NVIDIA and Mercedes-Benz have worked together as the automaker has previously used the former's GPU systems in the latest MBUX infotainment system.