A Self-Driving Car Quickly Drives Through A Heavy Rainstorm

It can be dangerous to hit bad weather while you are driving on a highway with reduced visibility, strong winds, and the hydroplaning risk. However, a new video demonstrates that self-driving vehicles are now making an impressive move in handling stormy conditions.

In the video which was uploaded by Logan LeGrand, a modified 2019 Toyota Corolla hatchback could be seen going at the speed of 40mph under heavy rain.

There are several times that a car slowing in front of the Toyota car. Every time this happens, a red message pops up, reading “take control immediately.” However, the driver doesn’t even need to touch the steering wheel since the car can deal with the situation itself.

The impressive demonstration is from Comma.ai, which is an AI startup whose founder is George Hotz. The Openpilot software of the company has the ability to override current-generation cars’ standard self-driving assistance feature.

The software’s first iteration could be found in Comma One, a complete $999 package. Comma One was first introduced in 2015 at a tech event. However, the project was forced to shut down by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

But that didn’t mean the end as in Nov 2016, Comma.ai decided to open-source the project with a warning to users that the company wouldn’t held any responsibilities if anything bad happened.

Since then, self-driving vehicle enthusiasts have been keeping the project alive. In May, the startup claimed that 10 million miles have been driven on Openpilot.