Use Case shift of ex-Starsky Robotics CEO validates my POV
Stefan Seltz-Axmacher, the former CEO of Starsky Robotics, has a new company called Polymath Robotics. That company creates “Plug & play autonomy for industrial vehicles”. This is massive use case and engineering approach shift from what Starsky Robotics was trying to do. The key aspect to this conversion is that Stefan can NOW be entirely successful. Where those making autonomous vehicles for on road cannot. Why is that?
One can either resolve the reasons why Starsky failed and why others have failed and everyone else is currently failing. Or you can avoid those issues. To Stefan’s credit he has done this. And done something far too many others have not and is dooming the industry. He allowed reality to rule and had the courage to act on it versus double down on the untenable and reckless. Industrial, mining, agriculture autonomous systems do NOT require AI/ML, General or Deep Learning to work. They are rules based, don’t classify objects, or worry about their expected behaviors. This means they also do not require aerospace/DoD/FAA level simulation. (The one caveat being sensor fidelity. If their sensor transition zones, especially in bad weather and with certain objects and their associated reflectivity levels matter, then they need precise, and sensor specific models built on real-world performance curves.)
Of course, everyone cannot shift to the already crowded field Stefan is in. (Their easy entry approach vehicle and sensor agnostic approach should help them greatly here.) That means you need to solve the problems I listed or end up where Starsky Robotics and several others have to date.
Here is a link to an Autonocast episode with Stefan — https://www.autonocast.com/blog/2022/8/11/259-stefan-seltz-axmacher-of-polymath-and-josh-hartung-of-sygnal
Below are a couple articles that explain my POV in more detail.
The Autonomous Vehicle Industry can be Saved by doing the Opposite of what is being done now to create this technology
Autonomous Vehicle Industry’s Self-Inflicted and Avoidable Collapse — Ongoing Update
How the failed Iranian hostage rescue in 1980 can save the Autonomous Vehicle industry
My name is Michael DeKort — I am Navy veteran (ASW C4ISR) and a former system engineer, engineering, and program manager for Lockheed Martin. I worked in aircraft simulation, the software engineering manager for all of NORAD, a software project manager on an Aegis Weapon System baseline, and a C4ISR systems engineer for DoD/DHS and the US State Department (counterterrorism). And a Senior Advisory Technical Project Manager for FTI to the Army AI Task Force at CMU NREC (National Robotics Engineering Center)
Autonomous Industry Participation — Air and Ground
- Founder SAE On-Road Autonomous Driving Simulation Task Force
- Member SAE ORAD Verification and Validation Task Force
- Member UNECE WP.29 SG2 Virtual Testing
- Stakeholder USDOT VOICES (Virtual Open Innovation Collaborative Environment for Safety)
- Member SAE G-35, Modeling, Simulation, Training for Emerging AV Tech
- Member SAE G-34 / EUROCAE WG-114 Artificial Intelligence in Aviation
- Member Teleoperation Consortium
- Member CIVATAglobal — Civic Air Transport Association
- Stakeholder for UL4600 — Creating AV Safety Guidelines
- Member of the IEEE Artificial Intelligence & Autonomous Systems Policy Committee
SAE Autonomous Vehicle Engineering magazine editor calling me “prescient” regarding my position on Tesla and the overall driverless vehicle industry’s untenable development and testing approach — (Page 2) https://assets.techbriefs.com/EML/2021/digital_editions/ave/AVE-202109.pdf
Presented the IEEE Barus Ethics Award for Post 9/11 DoD/DHS Whistleblowing Efforts
