Indy Autonomous Challenge to debut on FOS Hill in 2024

The IAC made its debut at Goodwood in 2023 as part of Future Lap presented by Randox, showcasing how the series is helping to advance automotive driving technology through a series of worldwide events.

While at Goodwood last year a team from IAC mapped the Hill in order to prepare to run in 2024 as part of the Festival of Speed. Now the IAC will move out of Future Lab and into the hillclimb proceedings.

Indy Autonomous Challenge was founded in 2021, and over the past three years has seen teams from all over the world developing groundbreaking autonomous driving technology at a pace that only the heat of automotive competition can inspire. Challenges have included single vehicle speed trials and overtaking games.

Teams all run cars based on Dallara’s IL-15 machine, used for Indy Lights competition. This car, called the Dallara AV-21 has broken numerous records during its history, including setting the autonomous land speed record at Kennedy Space Centre in 2022, hitting 192.2mph.

The car is kitted out with numerous sensors and pieces of computing hardware in order to run fully autonomous of human control, with teams developing software to solve the challenges of autonomous motorsport.

Events so far have taken place at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Texas Motor Speedway, and the Cathedral of Speed itself: Monza. The 2024 Festival of Speed will mark the first time that the IAC has held an event in the UK.

The event forms part of Goodwood’s FOS Tech strategy, bringing together all technology and future mobility content at the Festival of Speed, the latest automotive technology and alternative fuels with Future Lab and STEM programmes for 11 to 16-year-olds.

The IAC’s appearance on the Hill will be one of the first times that an exhibitor in Future Lab has taken the next step and performed on the Hill. The format of the challenge is yet to be revealed, but is set to wow those lucky enough to bag a hillside space.

Announcing the new challenge at a press conference at CES, Paul Mitchell, IAC President, said: “We can’t wait to head back to Goodwood in July with the world’s fastest and most advanced autonomous racecar. Goodwood provides a historic venue to showcase the future of high-speed autonomous mobility and connect a global audience to the talented university teams developing cutting edge AI driver software. We’re excited to be a part of the Festival of Speed’s growing FOS Tech content and let people get up close to the latest and greatest in innovation and technology.”