The most advanced self-driving system on the road is currently used by Waymo in their robotaxis. The Level 4 self-driving system used allows vehicles to be driven without a human behind the wheel. But in Malaysia, the government has set a target for Level 3 self-driving systems to be developed by local companies by 2030.
Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry (MITI), Sim Tze Tzin today announced the national target for local companies to upgrade their capabilities in manufacturing chips, sensors and software related to self-driving systems.
At the same time, local authorities and the Public Works Department (JKR) need to improve road infrastructure, signage and other support facilities to enable Level 3 self-driving systems to be used. To achieve this target, the Malaysian Automotive, Robotics and IoT Institute (MARii) will be given the mandate to drive this initiative forward.
Level 3 self-driving allows vehicles to operate independently without human control but human drivers must be ready to take over control immediately when needed. Several local companies have developed systems with this capability but have not yet been commercialized.
Last year, the Digital Minister said that the Digital Ministry and the Road Transport Department (JPJ) had begun discussions on creating a specific legal framework for self-driving vehicles, or driverless vehicles, in Malaysia.
