Automated Vehicle Safety Consortium Expands Technological Expertise with Addition of Lyft as Latest Member of Growing Consortium

2019-10-15 WARRENDALE, PA.

Lyft Joins SAE International, Ford, General Motors, Toyota, Uber ATG and Daimler to Develop Safety Framework for Broad Deployment of Autonomous Technology

WARRENDALE, Pa. (October 15, 2019) – The Automated Vehicle Safety Consortium™ (AVSC) today strengthened its commitment to safety with the inclusion of Lyft to the consortium. Launched in April 2019, the consortium includes leading OEM and technology member organizations that collaborate for the common goal of developing best safety practices around which automated vehicle (AV) technology can be responsibly adopted and evolved in advance of broad deployment.

“The addition of Lyft provides another perspective and additional expertise to the AVSC as we look to advance the adoption of AV technologies and public acceptance,” said Dr. Edward Straub, executive director of the Automated Vehicle Safety Consortium. “Lyft is a vocal advocate for tackling head-on the most challenging problems facing automated vehicles, including how to measure and assure safety.”

Lyft is working toward building the leading self-driving system for ridesharing with the goal of SAE Level 5 autonomy. The organization is dedicated to delivering an improved future where self-driving vehicles deliver a safer, healthier and more accessible transportation system designed for universal mobility.

“Prioritizing industry collaboration to advance self-driving technology is essential. With the leadership of John Maddox, our senior director of compliance and safety, Lyft worked to ensure that tech be an integral part of the Automated Vehicle Safety Consortium, alongside leading auto players,” said Raj Kapoor, Chief Strategy Officer of Lyft. “Leveraging insights from real scenarios on our network, we can better inform and teach self-driving systems, and are looking forward to sharing relevant insights with this important coalition in the pursuit of AV safety.”

Lyft lends its unique brand position to the growing consortium, which includes SAE International, Ford, General Motors, Toyota, Uber ATG and Daimler. The AVSC’s mission is to inform and accelerate the development of industry standards for AVs. Consortium members are working on the development of a series of safety principles for SAE Level 4 and 5 automated driving systems focusing on testing before and during operation of AVs on public roads; data collection, protection and sharing; and interactions between AVs and other road users.

For more information about the AVSC, visit avsc.sae-itc.org.

SAE Industry Technologies Consortia (SAE ITC®) is an affiliate of SAE International. The SAE ITC team specializes in establishing and managing consortia by providing proven processes, tools and resources. ITC enables public, private, academic and government organizations to connect and collaborate in neutral, pre-competitive forums thus empowering the setting and implementation of strategic business improvements in highly engineered industries globally. (www.sae-itc.com.)

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