23.06.2025
Autonomous Driving: From Infinite Possibilities to Safe Decisions— With Matthias Althoff
Research Film
How can we guarantee that autonomous vehicles always make the right decision in unpredictable traffic?
Matthias Althoff, Professor at the chair of Cyber-Physical Systems at the Technical University of Munich and MCML PI, explores the complex challenge of ensuring safety in AI-powered driving systems.
«There are infinitely many possible actions, and we check our own actions against all of these to ensure safety.»
Matthias Althoff
MCML PI
In this video, he explains why proving the correctness of an autonomous vehicle’s behavior is one of the most difficult tasks in AI and robotics — and how his team tackles this with advanced set computations, real-world testing, and rigorous verification processes.
«AI by itself doesn’t change the world but AI implemented in everyday things like vehicles, can really change our lives.»
Matthias Althoff
MCML PI
Althoff introduces EDGAR, his lab’s fully autonomous research vehicle. Using a rich array of sensors — from LiDAR to radar and even ultrasound — EDGAR maps its surroundings in great detail. Based on this data, the car generates possible motion plans and executes only those that are proven to be safe.
In this video series, discover how MCML researchers are bridging theory and practice to build trustworthy, real-world AI systems that prioritize safety, reliability, and impact.
©
The film was produced and edited by Nicole Huminski and Nikolai Huber.
Related
18.12.2025
"See, Don’t Assume": Revealing and Reducing Gender Bias in AI
ICLR 2025 research led by Zeynep Akata’s team reveals and reduces gender bias in popular vision-language AI models.
16.12.2025
Fabian Theis Featured in Handelsblatt on the Future of AI in Precision Medicine
MCML PI Fabian Theis discusses AI-driven precision medicine and its growing impact on individualized healthcare and biomedical research.
16.12.2025
Gitta Kutyniok Featured in VDI Nachrichten on AI Ethics
Gitta Kutyniok discusses measurable criteria for ethical AI, promoting safe and responsible autonomous decision-making.
16.12.2025
Hinrich Schütze Featured in WirtschaftsWoche on Innovative AI Approaches
Hinrich Schütze discusses Giotto.ai’s efficient AI models, highlighting memory separation and context-aware decoding to improve robustness.