FPT successfully organizes the semi-final round of Digital Race

On March 27^th, 2018 and March 31^st, 2018, 18 teams from 10 universities nationwide will compete in 2 semi-finals of Digital Race entitled “Programming Autonomous Car” in Hanoi and HCMC. Then 8 ‘racers’ with best results will be chosen to enter the finale of Digital Race 2017-2018.

Self-driving car is one of the key technologies that FPT is focusing. Currently, FPT is implementing a number of projects related to self-driving car technology in particular and automotive technology in general for about 40 major clients around the world. The insufficient human resources cover these new industries in Vietnam and in the world. In 2018, FPT expects to recruit around 500 developers to work in the automotive sector. Through the Digital Race competition, FPT hopes to involve students in researching and experiencing the latest technology of autonomous cars and include Vietnamese intelligence into the most advanced products in the world", said Le Hong Viet, FPT's Chief Technology Officer.

In the semi-final, teams will have to apply their knowledge of programming, image processing, and artificial intelligence to program model cars so that they can reach a maximum speed, identify left turn/right turn signs and avoid obstacles on the road. Moreover, the left turn and right turn signs will be changed randomly in every turn to evaluate accurately each team’s ability of identifying signs. Eight teams which finish the race in the shortest time will enter the finale to be held in May 2018.

Identifying the right turn/left turn signs which are randomly changed in each turn is one of the toughest challenges in the semi-final.

Each of 18 teams entering the semi-finals of the Digital Race 2017-2018 was awarded a model car which is 1/10 actual size. In addition, candidates could receive FPT experts’ assistance and supports when needed.

 "As my major is Radio – Electronics, my knowledge of programming and embedded computing technology is almost zero. However, with knowledge shared by the organizers and support provided by FPT technology experts, as well as online materials, after 4 months of joining Digital Car, my team currently not only better understand autonomous car technology but also program the car to run, avoid obstacles and identify signs. Although the knowledge gained from the competition is not related to our major, I believe it is very useful and come in handy in our career and lives in the future", said Vu Cong Minh, a member of MTA Race4Fun team from Military Technical Academy.

“I’m majoring in Information Technology, so all I know is programming. Thanks to Digital Race, I could gain more knowledge of image processing, image transmission and emulator. In addition, I also learned more about mechatronics such as motor control, sensor data acquisition, etc.", said Nguyen Van Tung, a member of UET Fastest team from University of Engineering and Technology.

Also in the semi-final round, the organizers announced the technology challenges for the teams entering the finale. Accordingly, in the final round, the teams will have to program the car to reach the maximum speed in complex terrain (lanes with lines or dashed lines, lawns, sidewalk, etc.), identify turn left/right signs, stop signs. The winning team will receive a total prize of VND450 million, including a one-week trip to Japan to experience and learn about new technology, and will be directly recruited by FPT Software.

On March 27, in the semi-finals in Hanoi, the 4 teams entering the finale included Proptype and Win Win Spiral (FPT University); MTA Race4Fun (Military Academy of Technology); UET Fastest (University of Engineering and Technology – Vietnam National University). Especially, the 2 teams from FPT University, Prototype and Win Win Spiral successfully finished the race in first and second place respectively.

As the number one IT service provider in Vietnam, FPT is always the pioneer in researching and providing the latest IT solutions/services to Vietnamese and international clients. In addition, FPT is pioneering bringing new technologies to Vietnam so that young people can access and practice them, then creating high quality human resources in Vietnam via technology contests such as Tri Tue Viet Nam (Vietnamese Intelligence) (2000 – 2007), Mobile Lab (2008-2009), Mobile Robot Challenge (2013), S.M.A.C Challenge (2014-2015) and Digital Race (from 2016 to now). Autonomous car, one of the latest technologies, attracts many tech giants in the world such as Google, Tesla, Uber and it has been chosen as the theme of Digital Race. FPT targets USD200 million in revenue in the automotive sector, including software, CAD, CAE, and IC design by 2020. In terms of human resources, the number of engineers is expected to reach 8,000 people in 2020.