MOSCOW, April 15. /TASS/: The market for unmanned vehicles, including in Russia, will be forming for at least another 10 years, since this is a very long and complicated process, Cognitive Pilot CEO Olga Uskova said in an interview with TASS.
"This market will be forming for at least 10 years. Everything here is connected with the legislation and a very complex system of changes in traffic rules, insurance, and so on. We can see this from the dynamics in different countries, the dynamics are sluggish, there’s a lot to do. In addition, there are discussions about the new concept of urban transport: it’s still unclear whether personal transport will remain in principle, how much it will be replaced by taxis or car sharing," she said.
According to Uskova, radical changes in this area are unlikely in the coming years, and the first thing to think about is to create a regulatory framework. "This is all related to the inclusion of artificial ‘brains’ in the list of products that should be given preferences for Russian development companies. This is a new type of product, we need regulation and certification of artificial intelligence technologies," she explained.
In addition, unmanned vehicles require training ranges, including free ones. "We spend quite a lot on renting training ranges in different places around the world, and the creation of Russian training ranges, especially free ones, would be significant support for young businesses," Uskova said. "Another important thing that we recommend to the authorities is to develop virtual training ranges, where Russian artificial ‘brains’ could train. Such services are too expensive to buy for startups themselves," she added.
Another block of issues that no one has yet approached, is the cryptographic protection of highly intelligent systems, she added. "Now it is necessary to include the state and subsidizing here, because it is a serious security issue," Uskova said.
Meanwhile, value of Cognitive Pilot, a joint venture of Sberbank and Cognitive Technologies, may reach $4 bln by 2023 with a possible increase by another 40%, Uskova told TASS. She added that it is too early to talk about whether the company plans to enter hold an IPO, although it cannot be ruled out.
In November 2019, Sberbank and Cognitive Technologies announced conclusion of a legally binding agreement on creating Cognitive Pilot company, specializing in the development of unmanned technologies in the fields of transport, agriculture, computer vision, and artificial intelligence. Under the terms of the deal, Sberbank owns 30% of the company’s shares, 70% of the shares are owned by the founders and management of Сognitive Technologies.
