Audi unveils driverless prototype car, the R8 e-tron

Smart sensors: The R8 e-tron has sensors, cameras and GPS to gauge altitude changes and road conditions.

Audi, the premium German carmaker, showcased an all-electric driverless vehicle, R8 e-tron, at CES Asia 2015 in Shanghai.

The R8 e-tron is the latest addition to its prototypes that the company calls “piloted driving”. The R8 has sensors, cameras and GPS to gauge altitude changes and road conditions, as well as on-board computer to calculate mass, force and ideal speed.

Audi was the first carmaker to test autonomous driving in 2009 with the Audi TT S with a record speed of 210kmh at the Bonneville salt flats. The technology has been continuously improved since then and earlier this year Audi scored another milestone with the A7 Sportback named Jack which drove autonomously over 900km from San Francisco to Las Vegas.

The company claims that the autonomous driving technology is the cumulation of years of research into assisted driving safety measures and driverless technology and has the potential to reduce accidents.

Audi AG chairman Rupert Stadler said it considers China as its second home market as the country accounts for about one third of Audi’s sales worldwide.

The company announced that it’s working with Huawei to develop an LTE module, which will create a personal hotspot for passengers, but only for cars that will be sold in Asian. It will also wirelessly charge smartphones that support the Qi standard.

Audi also showed off a tablet that connects to the Audi’s MMI Navigation Plus System via WiFi which will allow the driver to access the car’s features using gesture control.

It’s partnering with Chinese Internet giant Baidu which will provide the web browser and app store.

This year’s CES Asia focuses on three themes – connectivity, innovation and the Internet of Things.