Interview with Leaf Jiang

What does "Experience Connected Mobility" mean to you?
The phrase “experience connected mobility” makes me think of a world in which vehicles are part of an intelligent mobility fabric in which vehicles are “smart” enough to entirely avoid crashes, fatal or otherwise. It connotes the idea of using technology to make for a safer and more efficient transportation environment.

What do you hope to achieve at IAA MOBILITY 2023?
After 5 years of intense heads-down development and testing, NODAR has reached a key inflection point - we are ready to get the word out. We hope to achieve this goal at IAA MOBILITY 2023. And the timing of IAA is excellent! While auto OEMs feverishly work to deliver vehicles with higher levels of automation, they are waking to the fact that their investments in lidar are not bearing fruit on the required timelines. In parallel, the industry is developing ADAS regulations for AVs that allow for increased highway speeds, mandating even higher-performing 3D sensors. NODAR is not only a viable, lower-cost, and higher-performing alternative to lidar, but it is the only sensing system able to satisfy the new Automated Lane Keep Assist (ALKS) standards in Europe that allow speeds up to 130kph while mandating the ability to sense objects as small as 10cm at 150m. That NODAR is able to satisfy these stringent requirements is one of the key messages we hope to demonstrate at IAA MOBILITY 2023.

Which essential topic of the future receives too little attention from the public?
There is an elephant in the room. For the industry to deliver on promises of higher levels of autonomy, reliable 3D sensing is required to inform vehicles about their surroundings. These sensor systems must not only perform reliably and in real-time, but they must be cost-compatible with mainstream automotive cars. The elephant is lidar. The world has bet heavily on lidar and this technology has yet to deliver for many reasons, including high cost, low resolution, production issues, and short range. Meanwhile, there *are* technologies ready to do the heavy lifting. Like Nodar’s, of course. Based on off-the-shelf cameras, NODAR Hammerhead offers the reliability and price-point to enable the industry to hit its autonomous mobility goals, today.

In which area of mobility do you see the greatest potential and where do you see the greatest need to catch up?
Autonomy is the area of mobility in which I see the greatest potential. I believe this for several reasons. First, with each baby-step forward that we take towards full automation, thousands or potentially millions of lives will be saved. This area of innovation will meaningfully and positively impact society. And there is SO much room for improvement here, including but not limited to what we’re doing at Nodar. In terms of catching up, the automotive industry is notoriously slow to innovate and adapt. This is changing, pushed by a few extremely innovative companies. But we as an industry need to increase our pace, and adopt modern philosophies, techniques and processes that other industries have utilized effectively for years.

IAA MOBILITY is the leading global mobility platform. It connects innovators from all spectrums of mobility. Who do you want to network with in September and why?
At NODAR, our focus is on offering suppliers and manufacturers in the automotive market best-in-breed 3D sensing technology to help them achieve their objectives with respect to autonomy and advanced driver assistance. As such, any OEM with active ADAS and AV programs are of great interest to us. We also look to partner with those OEMs’ suppliers. We would greatly appreciate any introductions or networking opportunities that facilitate engaging with these companies.

The world is fundamentally changing. Innovation and also the endeavors in the mobility sector are bigger than ever before. What is your vision of the world in 20 years?
In the next 20 years, we will have autonomous vehicles. These cars will be driving themselves thanks to our Hammerhead vision system. As a result, we envision a future where transportation becomes not only safer but also more efficient and accessible. With autonomous vehicles, we anticipate significantly reducing traffic accidents and congestion. Furthermore, our vision extends beyond passenger vehicles, as we foresee autonomous technology being integrated into other vehicles such as trucks, trains, boats, agriculture, robotaxis, air taxis and more.