The News: Plus, the global provider of autonomous driving software solutions, has unveiled a new open and modular software platform, Open Platform for Autonomy (OPA), powered by the latest AI models. OPA supports all levels of autonomy, adapts to specific customer needs, and is optimized for cost-to-performance ratio. OPA is a unique approach in the autonomous vehicle industry for enabling autonomous driving capabilities on customizable configurations across different sensors, processors, vehicle platforms, and powertrains. Plus has packaged OPA into a suite of solutions that span driver-in next-generation safety systems to highly automated Plus Drive and driver-out Level 4 SuperDrive. The full press release is available on Plus’ news page.
New Open Platform for Autonomy From Plus Brings Scale and Flexibility to ADAS Space
Analyst Take: Plus’ OPA announcement further illustrates the automotive industry’s demand for scalable, flexible, reliable ADAS solutions. Headquartered in Silicon Valley and with operations in the US, Europe, and Australia, Plus, along with its ecosystem of partners—which includes Bosch, dm-drogerie markt, DSV, IVECO, Luminar, Nikola, and Transurban—is accelerating the development and adoption of next-generation transportation solutions, and with OPA, specifically relating to ADAS.
The platform essentially operates as the nervous system that connects and controls all of the elements needed to enable a vehicle’s autonomous driving capabilities, from the sensor suite that sees and senses the vehicle’s surroundings (radar, LiDAR, cameras, GPS/IMU) to the computing platform that handles the processing, interpretation and actuation of systems that control the vehicle’s behaviors (steering, braking, engine).
Plus uses foundational Level 4 autonomous driving software as its common base, taking a top-down capabilities approach to maximize the flexibility of its OPA offering across a broad range of ADAS tiers to serve the specific needs of OEMs and meet them where their vehicles’ features need to be. For instance, Plus’s L2++ PlusDrive solution is already in commercial use across the US, primarily in freight/delivery use cases, and is being tested on public roads in Europe, while Plus’s L4 SuperDrive solution is in play to bring autonomous trucks to the Australian market.
OPA is over-the-air (OTA) capable, enabling near-frictionless continuous software improvement and software-based expansion of features for drivers and automotive OEMs. This is a critical requirement for every OEM’s software-defined vehicle strategy as it allows for seamless software updates as well as upgrades to higher levels of automation throughout the life of the vehicle—another value-add for OEMs that brings peace of mind to consumers and vehicle operators.
Because OPA is a modular software platform—composed of off-board modules, autonomous vehicle functional modules, and vehicle integration modules—it allows OEMs maximum flexibility to create their own differentiated, personalized driving experiences. This translates not only into deeper control over the design, UX and implementation of automated driving capabilities for automotive OEMs, but the ability to reduce integration time and costs. In short, OPA’s modular design brings useful flexibility and scalability to the ADAS space across all levels of autonomy, and that is a very attractive package for automotive OEMs and their technology partners, particularly system integrators (customization, homologation, and validation).
Plus COO and cofounder Shawn Kerrigan puts it this way: “The Open Platform for Autonomy is a game-changer for the industry. Not only does it provide vehicle manufacturers and Tier 1s maximum flexibility to develop products customized for their audiences, it’s a natural pathway to evolve their offerings into higher levels of automation over time.” I am adding Plus to my list of automotive solutions companies to watch in 2024, so expect regular updates on its releases.
Disclosure: The Futurum Group is a research and advisory firm that engages or has engaged in research, analysis, and advisory services with many technology companies, including those mentioned in this article. The author does not hold any equity positions with any company mentioned in this article.
Analysis and opinions expressed herein are specific to the analyst individually and data and other information that might have been provided for validation, not those of The Futurum Group as a whole.
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Author Information
Olivier Blanchard is Research Director, Intelligent Devices. He covers edge semiconductors and intelligent AI-capable devices for Futurum. In addition to having co-authored several books about digital transformation and AI with Futurum Group CEO Daniel Newman, Blanchard brings considerable experience demystifying new and emerging technologies, advising clients on how best to future-proof their organizations, and helping maximize the positive impacts of technology disruption while mitigating their potentially negative effects. Follow his extended analysis on X and LinkedIn.
