Wejo’s neural edge platform overcomes data overload and latency obstacles

Manchester-based Wejo, a global leader in cloud and software analytics generated from autonomous, electric and connected vehicle data, has announced it is developing a neural edge platform that overcomes latency issues and data storage costs – the main potential obstacles in harnessing and scaling the power of real-time vehicle communications.

Leveraging existing collaborations with Microsoft Azure and Palantir Technologies, a developer of software for data analytics and data-driven decision making, Wejo Neural Edge optimises how data, from both other vehicles and smart infrastructure, is managed within the vehicle, further processes it at the “edge” and ultimately communicates to the cloud. 

This process will not only reduce data overload and maximise data insights but will reduce costs for automotive manufacturers, support safer vehicles, enable advancements in electric and autonomous mobility while reducing congestion and emissions.

“When I started Wejo in 2014, I knew that the proliferation of new mobility technology would drive data to a tipping point. And we are at that point today,” said Richard Barlow, Founder & CEO, Wejo. “With today’s vehicles producing approximately 25 gigabytes of data per hour, and as vehicle technology advances adding more sensors, data filtering and neural edge processing technology is essential to reduce this overload and drive the industry forward.”

Key features of the platform are:

Filtering and analysing vast amounts of autonomous, electric, and connected vehicle data before transmitting only the essential information to the cloud. This is made possible by utilising in-car edge processing that Wejo is developing to filter only useful and valuable connected vehicle data before it is transmitted to the cloud.

Using machine learning algorithms to reconstruct vehicle journey and event data, Wejo Neural Edge can take 20% of the data from autonomous, electric, and other connected vehicles and reconstruct it to represent 100% of the data, without any loss in data fidelity or integrity. The positive environmental impact is significant, as less data requires less storage which in turn reduces power consumption.

Better enabling vehicle to vehicle and vehicle to infrastructure communications by standardising and centralising the data. Not only does this provide a key building block for communication in near real time, but it also supports communication with infrastructure services such as road signs, traffic lights and parking lots, so vehicles can easily anticipate the road ahead and optimise mobility experiences.

The platform can also support validation of digitals twins of both the vehicles and cities in which they operate, which has the potential to reshape how we view the entire product and service ecosystem related to mobility. In a simulation environment, a digital twin can be constructed to simulate how vehicles in different cities need to respond and navigate without having to outlay massive infrastructure costs of physical hardware and vehicle monitoring.

“At Wejo, we believe that digital twins will reshape everything from road safety, to insurance, advertising, after-sales and more,” said David Burns, Chief Technology Officer, Wejo. “With Wejo Neural Edge we can look at what a connected vehicle is doing a kilometre away, and then alter and change the driver experience of an autonomous vehicle based on the information that is coming from down the road.”

As more car manufacturers work to harness their vehicle data, Wejo neural edge platform and common data model will enable different manufacturer makes and models to speak the same data language, a key component supporting vehicle to vehicle communication and vehicle communications with infrastructure and services.

Shyam Sankar, Chief Operating Officer of Palantir Technologies adds, “Our ongoing partnership with Wejo is focused on the most complex and critical challenges facing the future of mobility. What Wejo is building atop Palantir Foundry, including their cutting-edge neural edge technology, is a testament to the depth of their vision, speed of execution, and power of combining our technologies.”