Mazda has invested U.S. $16,000,000 in Secondmind, a UK-based startup company specializing in artificial intelligence solutions. The carmaker hopes to be able to speed up the research and development of electric vehicles using AI, ideally down to several months.
In addition to this boost in new car development speed, Mazda believes that the AI can keep the number of design and testing errors down to a minimum – better than the best human designers can do. As a result, car design may become a much less expensive thing.
Speaking in an interview, Mazda’s Naohito Saga said the company was still waiting for Secondmind to make a certain technological breakthrough. According to him, the market is ready for EVs and can use faster development cycles; the ball is on the automakers’ side.
It is still unknown when the Japanese company may begin using AI solutions in its vehicle design processes. Mazda’s latest design study was called ‘Iconic SP’ and had a rotary engine used exclusively as a power generator for the on-board batteries. You can find it in the gallery and the video here.
