Here's Why the BMW 7-Series Uses Level 3 Autonomy

• With help from Innoviz, BMW is ready to launch a Level 3 autonomous driving system on its 2024 7-Series, but the Bavarian brand isn't stopping there.

• After announcing its new, Czechia-based Future Mobility Development Center, BMW says it will co-develop a second generation of Level 3 autonomy for future models.

• Cameras and lidar sensors are essential for increased redundancy in autonomous driving and ensuring that liability requirements are met, Innoviz CEO Omer Keilaf explained.

If Mercedes-Benz has an SAE Level 3 autonomous driving system publicly available, then naturally BMW needs to have one, too. But BMW has been saying a Level 3 autonomous system is on the way since 2020, without much to show for it. Yet again, BMW says that is all about to change, as it is soon to release such a system and announces a renewed dedication to autonomous technology.

Leading the way is Innoviz, an Israeli lidar company that claims to be the missing piece in BMW's newest quest for hands-free driving. In a renewed agreement with executives in Bavaria, Innoviz will start a B-sample development phase on a new generation of lidar, building on the company's first Level 3 ADAS offering set for release on the 2024 BMW 7-Series.

BMW still asserts that the future of the ultimate autonomous driving machine isn't certain, but positive testing of Innoviz's Level 3 assisted driving system on the incoming 7-Series indicates a broader range of the BMW lineup could receive such technology in the near future. Additionally, BMW just launched its own Future Mobility Development Center in Czechia, which it says will first focus on autonomous driving development.

"Lidar is one of the critical technologies underpinning Level 3 or even higher automated functions. Optimizing lidar technologies and costs are the major challenges in order to bring Level 3 highly automated driving into the mainstream," said Nicolai Martin, SVP of Driving Experience for BMW Group. "We are very pleased to have Innoviz develop the first B-samples of this new lidar generation and hope that the results of the B-sample phase create a basis for a possible future extension of our collaboration."

Innoviz says customers can expect additional features beyond some semblance of conditionally monitored driving to be present on its Level 3 system. Specifically, the BMW Group is looking for a lidar-based Minimal Risk Maneuver (MRM) system, which allows for independent analysis and action from the vehicle during potentially dangerous driving scenarios.

But how exactly does the current Innoviz lidar work, and why is lidar so essential for proper Level 3 automation? To better answer these questions, we asked Innoviz Co-Founder and CEO, Omer Keilaf, in an interview late last year.