Hyundai has been showing off its autonomous car technology in an ad for its new Genesis luxury saloon / sedan (delete according to which side of the Pond you reside). The most impressive bit is that the technology is available on Hyundais you can buy right now.
Indeed, that's something that's often missed in the autonomous car debate – the extent to which autonomous driving is already possible.
The video shows a group of Genesis saloons / sedans running line astern on a multi-lane road. Hyundai's lane assist and smart cruise functions are enabled, allowing the 'stunt' drivers of all but the lead Genesis to leap out of their cars, leaving them completely driverless as they flow down the road.
The driver in the lead car then blind folds himself for added drama. Finally, a large truck provides a simulated emergency situation, causing each Genesis in turn to activate its autonomous emergency braking feature.
All the tech and features shown are available right now on the Genesis. As far as we can tell, the only tweak made was to allow the lane assist function to continue working without the car detecting the driver's hands on the steering wheel.
Anyway, superficially, it's just a bit of fun. But it does demonstrate how far driverless tech has already come. Resistance is very likely futile.
