Hands Off the Wheel: Inside the Autonomous Driving Revolution
From self-driving buses to simulation-based regulation, Imagry and Cognata are leading a global transformation in how we move and test our vehicles.
Autonomous vehicles once seemed like a distant dream. Today, two Israeli tech companies, Imagry and Cognata, are accelerating that future by developing the core technologies and infrastructure needed to bring driverless mobility to life. From AI-powered public buses to hyper-realistic virtual simulations that regulators can use to test safety, these companies are redefining what it means to drive and who, or what, is actually driving.
Vision Without Maps – Public Transportation Re-invented
The Haifa-based startup Imagry has a radical premise, creating fully autonomous driving that doesn’t require HD maps or expensive LiDAR sensors. Instead, the company’s camera-based system mimics human cognition to deliver real-time driving decisions without preloaded maps and with reaction times three times faster than a skilled human driver.
Eran Ofir, CEO of Imagry, claims their technology delivers a system that sees everything and reacts in under 100 milliseconds. That’s a third of a human driver’s reaction time, making driving not just autonomous but safer.
Their system uses eight strategically placed cameras that feed video into neural networks trained on hundreds of millions of images since 2018. These networks each specialize in identifying different objects, such as cars, pedestrians, traffic signs, and combine to produce a 3D, 360-degree map of the environment. The AI then makes decisions using deep convolutional neural networks to process motion planning in real time.
Unlike other systems that rely on rigid and costly HD maps, Imagry’s mapless architecture offers remarkable flexibility, particularly in dense urban environments where conditions change frequently.
Imagry is building AI that thinks like a human driver. Its system is designed to perform perception, interpretation, and judgment in real time, effectively mimicking the way the human brain processes driving decisions.
Another key feature is hardware independence. Imagry’s platform supports multiple chips and vehicle types, giving it a significant edge in scalability. And thanks to a layered architecture, core tech surrounded by country-specific customizations, it’s easily adaptable across international markets, with pilots already underway in the US, Germany, Japan, and Israel.
While private autonomous vehicles still face adoption hurdles, Imagry sees public buses as the perfect proving ground. Buses provide an easier example. They follow the same routes, stop at fixed stations, and operate at lower speeds. “AI learns these routines quickly, and global demand is rising due to driver shortages, urbanization, and aging populations.
Israel is already on board. In Nahariya, autonomous Bus Line 5 is powered by Imagry and is operational under a Ministry of Transport pilot. Once it reaches 100,000 safe kilometers, the vehicle can move from Level 3 (with a safety driver) to Level 4 (fully driverless). That milestone is expected by 2026.
Israel’s legislation has also made it a global model. The Innovation Authority and Ministry of Transport moved quickly to make regulatory frameworks a reality… and Europe is now adopting similar laws.
Imagry’s autonomous parking system, developed with Continental, is already in use in the US and Germany and is expected to become standard in private vehicles within two years.
Simulating Reality: Cognata’s Virtual Sandbox for Safer AV Testing
But how do regulators know these systems are truly safe? That’s where Cognata comes in. The Rehovot-based company develops hyper-realistic simulations that allow manufacturers and governments to test autonomous vehicles (AVs) without putting a single person at risk.
According to Cognata, simulations aren’t just for development anymore. They are enabling regulators themselves to use simulation as a tool for certification.
In partnership with Imagry, the Israel Innovation Authority, the Ministry of Transport, and Cognata ran the country’s first-ever simulation used as a regulatory decision-making tool. Their virtual world replicates cities, road conditions, weather, and even lighting, while also modeling how sensors perceive these changes.
Using supervised generative AI, Cognata renders computer graphics and modifies real driving footage to add fog, dusk, rain, or altered signage, creating highly accurate and repeatable test scenarios. Cognata’s system doesn’t imagine but modifies reality. That’s the only way to ensure safety.
Cognata’s platform is now being used for a range of autonomous robotics, including forklifts, mining trucks, tractors, and military systems. In fact, the company believes that off-road robotics will go mainstream before autonomous cars do as there’s less regulation and fewer pedestrians. It’s where the revolution will begin.
Both Imagry and Cognata are central players in AVATAR, Israel’s national consortium for autonomous vehicle technology, which includes top tech firms, universities, and multinationals like Renault, Nissan, and Mitsubishi. The consortium recently concluded a multi-year project with a demonstration in Tel Aviv, which combined real test drives with virtual simulations.
The collaboration exemplifies what makes Israel’s innovation ecosystem so effective: early-stage funding, strategic government backing provided by the Innovation Authority at the critical stage, and rapid cross-sector integration.
Redefining the Road Ahead
Together, these companies are reshaping public expectations and regulatory standards. Whether through real-world autonomous public transit or virtual testing labs, they are paving the road to a safer, smarter, and more flexible transportation future.
And while they acknowledge the technical, legal, and societal challenges, they’re also clear-eyed about the stakes.
