Michelin has been named the official tire supplier for the inaugural season of the autonomous-race car series Roborace.
The “Robocar,” designed by Daniel Simon, is currently still in the works. The development car seen during exhibitions at Formula E events is the “DevBot,” with the official Robocar set to be unveiled in 2017.
Like Roborace, Michelin has also been doing a lot of work for the series at its testing facilities.
The tires that will be fitted to the Roborace cars will be next-generation road tires, as one of the key goals of the series is to help develop software and hardware that will benefit vehicles on the road.
“We are extremely proud to have Michelin as our partner,” said Denis Sverdlov, CEO of Roborace. “We expect our partners to be bold and to believe in a driverless future where our cities are greener, safer, quieter and smarter in ways that improve everyday lives. Michelin impressed us every time we met and they deeply understand the powerful opportunity of what road travel will become. They are pushing us, and themselves, to develop a world that moves from possibility to reality. Their commitment to safety and innovation, and the way we inspire each other to design the best possible solutions makes this a perfect partnership.”
“We are very excited to confirm our partnership with Roborace today,” added Michelin Motorsport Director Pascal Couasnon. “We have been following the championship’s progress very closely and have been testing privately with them for some time. We are very impressed by the speed at which Roborace has been developing driverless technology and hardware for its championship. Driverless technology is coming and we want to be at the forefront in terms of research and development. At Michelin, we have always been committed to innovation and using global events and motorsport to take our products to the next level, Roborace now provides us with a unique opportunity to apply our expertise and knowhow to the world of autonomous cars. Michelin wants to help shape the future, not just be a part of it.”
